The brawl between Samsung Biologics and Lotte Biologics, in which the former has been accusing the latter of employee poaching and trade secret infringement, has entered a new stage as Samsung recently filed a preliminary injunction against Lotte Biologics.

According to industry reports, Samsung Biologics filed for a preliminary injunction against Lotte Biologics and three ex-employees.

As a result, a hearing on the case was reportedly held behind closed doors at the Seoul Central District Court on Wednesday.

While Samsung has taken legal action against Lotte several times in the past, such cases were all against ex-employees that had moved to Lotte and this was the first time it has filed for an injunction against the company itself.

Last year, Samsung Biologics filed an application for a preliminary injunction against three ex-employees who transferred to Lotte, and received a partial decision from the Incheon District Court in July last year.

The ruling meant that the three ex-Samsung employees who joined Lotte could not be able to utilize the core technology they learned at Samsung in the future.

In August and September of the same year, Samsung again filed criminal charges against four ex-employees who transferred to Lotte.

In March, the Incheon District Prosecutor's Office indicted one of them on charges of violating the Unfair Competition Prevention and Trade Secret Protection Act and embezzlement.

There is reportedly some overlap between the three employees who are the subject of the preliminary injunction from the employees who were previously targeted or criminally charged.

Both Samsung Biologics and Lotte Biologics officials declined to comment on the matter, citing that it is an ongoing case.

Meanwhile, the two companies began to clash in 2022 as Lotte Biologics started its biopharmaceutical business in earnest.

Since its establishment, Lotte Biologics has hired many of its positions with ex-Samsung Biologics employees.

Notably, Lotte Biologics CEO Richard Lee is a former Samsung Biologics executive who worked at Samsung Biologics from 2011 to 2021.

Industry watchers expect that the scuffle between the two companies will worsen after Lotte Biologics completes its contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) plant in Songdo.

Lotte Biologics had previously its plans to invest 3 billion won ($2.3 billion) in building three mega-plants in Korea with a total capacity of 360,000 liters of antibody medicines by 2030 during the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in January.

The company had recently taken its first step in making this happen by signing a four-way memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Lotte Holdings, Incheon Metropolitan City, and the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority (IFEZA) to establish its biopharmaceutical production facility in Songdo.

According to industry officials close to the matter, the main and final contract will be closed in August.