Updated at 1 p.m. ET

(Bloomberg) – Alliant Insurance Services Inc. lost its bid to buy Wells Fargo & Co.'s insurancebusiness but sought to steal its rival's employees anyway,according to a lawsuit filed Thursday in Delaware.

Wells Fargo Insurance Services alleges Alliant has been tryingto hire top sales executives in 10 U.S. cities from Atlanta toDallas to Sacramento, in some cases using senior executives topersonally call Wells Fargo salesmen. Information Alliant usedwas included in confidential deal documents it received as apotential buyer for the company, Wells Fargo said.

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'Agressive compaign'

“Alliant commenced an aggressive campaign to solicit WFIS'ssales executives to leave their employment with WFIS and to acceptemployment with Alliant,” Wells Fargo said in the complaint filedin Delaware Chancery Court. Wells Fargo called Alliant a“persistent and overreaching competitor.”

Lynda Lane, an Alliant spokeswoman, didn't immediately returnmessages seeking comment.

Last month, Alliant hired one executive vice president who hadnational sales responsibilities, Wells Fargo said without namingthe person. That manager, Wells Fargo alleges, is using informationhe had about other sales staff to recruit them to Alliant, inviolation of a contract he had with his former employer.

Alliant had emerged as the lead bidder on the insurance businessin June, according to people familiar with the matter, and a dealthat would have made it the fifth-largest insurance broker in theU.S. The company ultimately lost the bidding to USI Insurance Services.

Confidentiality agreement runs through 2018

During the evaluation process, Wells Fargo said Alliant hadaccess to deal documents that included lists of top-producing salesemployees by office. The information was covered by aconfidentiality agreement that runs through Nov. 1, 2018, andblocks Alliant from using it for anything other than evaluating apurchase of the insurance unit, Wells Fargo said.

Wells Fargo, the largest U.S. mortgage lender, has beennarrowing its focus on banking. Chief Executive Officer Tim Sloansaid this month the company is examining all of its units topossibly exit ones deemed outside of core operations. Last year, Wells Fargo sold a crop insurancebusiness to Zurich Insurance Group AG.

Brokers like Alliant are are middlemen, who can help commercialclients buy coverage from insurers to guard against risks rangingfrom weather damage to lawsuits. The companies operate with littledebt or capital costs, meaning their employees are often their mostvaluable assets, especially when they have deep industry ties orspecialized expertise.

The case is Wells Fargo Insurance Services USA Inc. v.Alliant Insurance Services Inc., 2017-0540, Delaware ChanceryCourt (Wilmington).

Related: Global insurance mergers & acquisitions slowedto $33B in 2016, says Conning

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