Team NZ given mystery packet

By HELEN TUNNAH

Team New Zealand have been given confidential boat drawings belonging to bitter America's Cup rival OneWorld Challenge as a long-running wrangle over design secrets gets murkier.

The design package was handed over with two original Team New Zealand designs that were given back to the cup-holders last week.

Team New Zealand was given the OneWorld designs, and two original copies of designs for their 2000 boats NZL57 and NZL60, by OneWorld former operations manager Sean Reeves.

He has worked for the New Zealanders in the past, but left soon after the last cup to set up the rival United States syndicate, taking with him key Team NZ crew, including designer Laurie Davidson.

Mr Reeves handed over the two design packages last week, along with a sworn affidavit outlining where he got them.

Team NZ would not reveal what was in the affidavit. But yesterday they publicly displayed a small part of the returned documents, which clearly show they are detailed NZL57 deck and hull plans.

They have held on to their own designs, but yesterday gave OneWorld's material, which was in sealed packages, unopened to the America's Cup Arbitration Panel.

The actions of Mr Reeves, who is embroiled in a bitter court dispute with OneWorld, have infuriated the Seattle syndicate.

They deny ever having seen the two Team New Zealand documents and have demanded their own design package back.

Chief executive Gary Wright said the syndicate would also ask the FBI to investigate Mr Reeves for contempt of court.

He said Mr Reeves had previously sworn under oath that he had no copies of their initial design package, but late last week had told a US federal court that he did make some duplications. OneWorld last year launched legal action against their former employee after another syndicate, Oracle Racing of California, claimed Mr Reeves had tried to sell them OneWorld secrets.

Mr Reeves denied the claims, and has said the secrets were never OneWorld's because the designs were actually the intellectual property of Team New Zealand.

The line drawings Mr Reeves gave Team New Zealand last week are believed to be Mr Davidson's initial work prepared for OneWorld in 2000.

Mr Wright said yesterday that no one at OneWorld knew anything about the two Team New Zealand designs that Mr Reeves had.

"Those plans haven't been at OneWorld and they haven't formed a part of OneWorld's design process.

"I've no idea whether Reeves could have had those at home all the time he worked for us at OneWorld, but I don't think that implicates OneWorld.

"I would swear, and everyone on our design team would swear, that they didn't come from OneWorld."

When the row first erupted OneWorld told the Arbitration Panel it had some "minor" Team New Zealand data obtained inadvertently, including deck layout information, but says the material was never used.

The panel is due to rule on that case this month.