Phoenix Capital, the boutique equities and listed property manager set up by a group of former Legg Mason investment managers, has settled out of court the action by its former employer over alleged breach of intellectual property rights.

As previously reported, Legg Mason took the Phoenix principals, including former head of equities, Michael Wood, and former head of listed property, Stuart Cartledge, to court over certain information claimed to have been taken from the funds management firm before they left earlier this year. Legg Mason obtained an ‘Anton Pillar Order’ against the Phoenix principals, which gave Legg Mason the authority to enter the premises and remove information which was to be before the Supreme Court of Victoria. According to court documents, the matter has been resolved following the receipt of all information by Legg Mason and various undertakings by the Phoenix principals. It is believed that a sum of money was also paid to Legg Mason by the Phoenix principals. Neither the head of business for Legg Mason in Australia, Kimon Kouryialas, nor Michael Wood, for Phoenix, was prepared to comment on the settlement yesterday. Wood would only say that the matter was now “resolved”, and that Phoenix was “;free to compete in the market”; without restraint. The first client for its listed property fund was currently seeding, Wood said, while a “;tax aware”; Australian equities fund will be launched in the first quarter of next year.