• by Wendy Davis  @wendyndavis, July 29, 2005

A judge in Seattle has temporarily prohibited computer scientist Kai-Fu Lee from working at Google. Lee had worked at Microsoft until earlier this month, when he gave notice that he would join Google to lead its China office.

"The equities dictate that a temporary restraining order ... should be entered," wrote Judge Steven Gonzalez. He also ordered Microsoft to post $1 million by Tuesday, which could be used to compensate Google and Lee if Gonzalez or another judge later decides that Microsoft wasn't entitled to the injunction.

Microsoft filed a lawsuit last week in Washington state court to prevent Google from hiring Lee. In court papers, Microsoft claimed that Lee signed an agreement not to work for any Microsoft competitors for at least one year after leaving the company. Microsoft also alleged that Lee's defection would likely result in disclosure of trade secrets.

Google responded that same week by filing its own lawsuit against Microsoft in California state court.

Google also filed court papers this week opposing Microsoft's request for an injunction in Washington. In the papers filed this week, Google called the lawsuit a "charade," adding: "Microsoft executives admitted to Lee that their real intent is to scare other Microsoft employees into remaining at the company."

The papers also reveal a dispute over the scope of Lee's role in developing search engines at Microsoft--which is still struggling to capture market share in search from Google and Yahoo!, the two most popular search engines.

Microsoft alleged that its desktop search product (which searches users' hard drives) was "recently developed by Lee's group at Microsoft," and that Lee had responsibility for "managing the creation of new search technologies and methodologies for Microsoft."

But Google and Lee dispute that characterization. "Lee was never responsible for algorithmic Internet search at Microsoft, never saw that code, and never participated in a review," alleged Google in its court papers. What's more, while Lee had "oversight responsibility" for a team dubbed "MSN Search," this responsibility lasted for just one year between 2001 and 2002--at least three years before Microsoft launched its own organic search product in beta late last year--according to Google's papers.

In addition, in an affidavit filed with the Seattle court this week, Lee said the members of his group who started the project did so on an "unofficial" basis last April, without consulting him, and that it took nearly two months before he even learned of the endeavor. "In June 2004 I heard of the project, reviewed and approved it," he wrote. "Approximately one month later, it was transferred to MSN, because Bill Gates designated MSN and not my team to compete against other algorithmic-search-based Internet Search companies."