MATTEL SUES EX-EMPLOYEE WHO LEFT FOR RIVAL TOY FIRM.

Byline: Brent Hopkins Staff Writer

NORTH HILLS - A three-year fight between toy makers intensified Friday after Mattel Inc. sued to prevent a former executive now working for rival MGA Entertainment Inc. from divulging trade secrets to his new employer.

The action drew an angry response from North Hills-based MGA.

Mattel, the maker of Barbie, seeks in the Los Angeles Superior Court suit to block its former senior vice president and general manager Ronald Brawer from discussing strategic plans with his new bosses.

Brawer left Mattel on Oct. 1 to become MGA's executive vice president of sales and marketing and he's handling the Bratz fashion dolls, which have knocked Barbie from the top spot in the doll world.

Brawer was served with the lawsuit at his home late Thursday night.

``At the same time that Brawer was secretly making plans to join a direct competitor, he took steps to maximize his exposure to Mattel's confidential information,'' the lawsuit said.

Mattel executives did not return calls seeking comment, nor did attorney Glenn D. Dassoff, who filed the suit.

MGA declined to let Brawer speak for himself, but chairman and chief executive officer Isaac Larian fired back with an angry retort, calling Mattel ``cowards'' and pledging to step up competitive pressure on the company.

It's the second time Mattel employed a pre-emptive suit.

In April, the big El Segundo-based toy maker sued a former designer who ended up creating the Bratz dolls for MGA.

In the current case, Mattel accuses Brawer of refusing to sign a confidentiality agreement and alleges that he was in frequent contact with his present employers while he still had access to sensitive company information. Mattel also claims that if he passed the information along, the company would suffer ``great and irreparable harm.''

``They're trying to distract us, but it'll have the reverse effect on us,'' Larian said. ``Our people are more energized when they see something like this. We're going to stand 100 percent behind Ron Brawer.''

Mattel has developed a reputation as a fierce watchdog of its brands, with industry observers noting that the company is particularly protective of Barbie. The company has sued musicians and artists to prevent them from using the doll's name and image in their work in recent years, losing both times.

``I've never heard of a company suing an executive in the absence of a signed agreement or proof he leaked trade secrets,'' said Scott Landsbaum, a Beverly Hills attorney who specializes in toy industry law. ``But Mattel takes a very aggressive stance in these matters.''

Brent Hopkins, [phone]

brent.hopkins(at)dailynews.com