Former CommVault MD sues over sacking

CommVault today sought Federal Court leave to examine witnesses from New Zealand in a wrongful dismissal case brought against it by its former managing director.

Former CommVault managing director Dominic Corrigan has accused the company of unfairly sacking him for criticising a senior director’s behaviour.

Corrigan was the storage management software vendor’s managing director of Australia and New Zealand from March 1 to May 27 last year.

He was sacked by vice president and regional managing director for Asia-Pacific and Japan Gerry Sillars five days before the end of his three-month probation period.

Corrigan said in his statement of claim to the Federal Court of Australia last August that CommVault contravened section 340(1) of the Fair Work Act 2009, which protected employees’ exercise of their workplace rights.

Corrigan claimed that he was approached by human resources director Richard Grills, Europe, Middle East and Africa regional director Stephen Rose and Asia-Pacific and Japan alliances director and A/NZ channels director Andy Milburn during his employment at CommVault.

Corrigan alleged that on separate occasions, Grills, Rose and Milburn asked him to comment on Sillars’ behaviour, with Rose raising questions of sexism, bullying, alcohol consumption and financial wrongdoing.

Corrigan claimed that there was “a culture of excessive consumption of alcohol within the [CommVault] Group” usually at "long lunches" that were "receipted to the group", the claim stated.

About a week before he was sacked, Corrigan claimed to have received a text message from Rose, who said: “Do not use emails in relation to Sillars as I and my IT team are of the opinion your email and Andy’s [Milburn] emails are being read by other persons in Australia.”

Corrigan sought to be reinstated at CommVault and to be paid his ordinary annual remuneration of $200,000 gross plus superannuation and bonus payments from May 27 to the date of determination.

He also argued that he had worked without pay between February 22 to February 28 last year, despite the March 1 starting date listed on his employment contract.

NZ witnesses sought

In its defence to the Federal Court on 18 September, CommVault denied that Corrigan was entitled to compensation payments.

CommVault today sought to issue subpoenas to New Zealand business partners, Ingram Micro manager Stuart Alexander and Revera co-founder Roger Cockayne.

Both would be asked to serve as respondent's witnesses over video conferencing link at Federal Court hearings of the case next week.