A lawsuit against owners of a new pharmacy in Ketchum has been dismissed.
Fifth District Judge Robert Elgee signed an order Aug. 5 dismissing the case against Valley Apothecary proprietors Paula Shaffer and Cathy Swink, filed earlier this summer by SuperValu. The case was dismissed with prejudice, meaning the plaintiff cannot file another case on the same claim.
"The case has settled upon terms which are confidential, and the lawsuit has been dismissed," said Swink's attorney, Michael Christian, with the Boise law firm Marcus, Christian, Hardee & Davies.
The plaintiff and defendants agreed that "this matter has been fully settled and compromised and the matter may be dismissed with prejudice, each respective party to bear their own costs," according to the stipulation to dismiss document filed with the court Aug. 4.
"We're just happy that we can move on at this point," Shaffer said. "We're both excited to put that to rest."
Swink and Shaffer are pharmacists who previously worked for SuperValu, the parent company of Sav-On pharmacies and Albertsons.
In the complaint, SuperValu alleged that Swink signed a noncompete agreement, in effect for one year after her last day of employment with SuperValu, which was March 31. In that agreement, the lawsuit stated, she was prohibited from engaging in business activities within 15 miles from the Sav-On pharmacy at 911 N. Main St. in Hailey. That location is 11.1 miles from Valley Apothecary.
In the complaint against Shaffer, SuperValu alleged she aided and abetted Swink to breach her contractual obligations to the company.
Steven Schossberger, an attorney who argued the case for SuperValu, said the case was settled, but he did not provide details.
"The parties have entered into a confidential settlement agreement," he said.
Valley Apothecary has been open since late June in the Copper Ridge building.
"It will be business as usual for us," Shaffer said, "except we don't need to worry about tying up our time with a legal process."
Rebecca Meany: rmeany@mtexpress.com
