A Nashville judge has ruled in favor of Rolf Zettersten in the case of Thomas Nelson Publishers v. Rolf Zettersten, granting Zettersten's motion for a summary judgment to dismiss the case. Zettersten, formerly publisher at Thomas Nelson Books, resigned in July 2000 to accept an offer from Time Warner Trade Publishing to develop a line of Christian books. Nelson filed suit against Zettersten, charging he had violated a noncompete clause in his contract.
Judge Ellen Hobbs Lyle ruled that Nelson had failed to draft an agreement that prohibited Zettersten from doing business with authors on future works. The decision means that Nelson can no longer try to prevent authors such as John Maxwell, whose first book from Warner is due out this fall, from working with Zettersten.
