Realtor.com Parent Company Drops Lawsuit Against CoStar, But War Of Words Continues

A monthslong legal battle between Move Inc. and CoStar Group has come to a close, with the former dropping its trade secret lawsuit against the commercial real estate data and analytics company.

But the verbal sparring between the two companies continues as they remain at odds about the events that preceded the lawsuit and why it was resolved.

Move, the parent company of Realtor.com, dropped its case on Monday. The firm had accused former Realtor.com employee James Kaminsky of accessing confidential information during his tenure at Homes.com, which is owned by CoStar.

The company claimed Kaminsky “secretly exfiltrated Move’s trade secrets, and spied on Move’s real-time confidential electronic documents to give CoStar a massive unfair competitive advantage” in a motion filed last July.

Move said Tuesday that it stood by the accusations in the suit but dropped it because Kaminsky no longer works for CoStar.

“After catching our ex-employee brazenly accessing our strategy documents while employed at CoStar, we acted decisively, launching legal action to halt and prevent any ongoing exploitation of our intellectual property,” a Realtor.com spokesperson told Bisnow.

“Realtor.com has chosen to settle with our ex-employee, who is no longer an employee of CoStar. Given that he is no longer employed by CoStar and we have a settlement in place, we have chosen to dismiss our trade secrets lawsuit against CoStar. Our commitment to safeguarding our trade secrets remains unwavering and uncompromising.”

CoStar General Counsel Gene Boxer had a very different take on the case in a statement provided to Bisnow. 

“The bottom line is that Move’s case collapsed, and it begged us to agree to permit its dismissal with prejudice,” he said.

Boxer alleged that before dropping the suit, Move attempted to delay the case after receiving a letter from CoStar's outside counsel threatening sanctions for pursuing a case without evidence.

“For Move, it’s an embarrassing end to a string of court losses,” Boxer said in his statement. “Move tried to obtain a preliminary injunction, we opposed, and the court denied the motion, lambasting Move for refusing to take any discovery, and for failing to demonstrate any harm.  We then filed and won a motion to dismiss two of Move’s claims, again on the basis of a lack of harm. As the end of discovery loomed, and facing the prospect of sanctions, Move had nowhere left to turn.” 

CoStar also put out a press release celebrating the development on Monday.

“This lawsuit was a PR stunt from the start - ridiculous, and totally devoid of merit,” CoStar CEO Andy Florance said in a statement.

“Nine months later, after a warning from our lawyers about sanctions, Move folded. We did not settle. We didn’t pay a dime. Move simply capitulated.”

Florance called the suit “a desperate, anticompetitive stunt to slow down Homes.com as we passed Realtor.com in the marketplace.”

The legal battle commenced roughly a year after CoStar attempted to buy Realtor.com from Move’s parent company News Corp in 2023. CoStar had previously purchased Apartments.com and Homesnap.

CoStar is fighting Realtor.com on multiple fronts, vowing last year to spend $1B in advertising for Homes.com, The Real Deal reported. This year, CoStar splashed out for pricey spots during the Super Bowl.