In the latest in this feud between Microsoft and Google, a Washington state judge has ruled that Dr. Kai-Fu Lee can immediately begin working for Google. The legal disputes began when Kai-Fu Lee resigned from Microsoft to join Google earlier this year, and Microsoft took legal action over a non-compete agreement he had signed, which Microsoft claimed would prevent Lee from joining Google.
In a 13-page ruling released on Tuesday, Judge Steven Gonzalez restricted Lee to recruiting for Google in China and to talking to government officials about getting a licence to do business there but said Lee cannot work on technologies such as search or speech. Lee also cannot set budgets or salaries, or decide what research Google will do in China, according to the order.
Google have said that they are thrilled about the Judge's decision to allow Lee to work for them, and have said that although there are some restrictions, Lee will be able to do basically what Google has hired him to do.