Judge grants extension in Planet Fitness case.

PORTLAND, Maine — A judge has again agreed to extend an expiring restraining order, this time by 60 days, after a joint petition from lawyers for Planet Fitness and its former payroll manager.

Planet Fitness alleges Jason Cole stole sensitive information. The judge is allowing extra time so the parties can try to resolve the case, according to court documents.

The motion, filed in U.S. District Court in Portland, Maine, last week, states Planet Fitness and defendant Cole, “have engaged in settlement negotiations.” The motion the judge granted on the same day it was filed, also grants Cole a 60-day extension to file his answer to the initial complaint.

“The parties continue to endeavor to reach a settlement of this matter and have agreed to mediate this dispute,” according to the joint motion.

The parties asked and were granted a 30-day extension at the end of August. The previous motion noted that Cole has returned some Planet Fitness property.

Cole, of Lebanon, Maine, is the town’s former assistant rescue chief and selectman, and a former public safety dispatcher for Rochester. He served as payroll manager at Planet Fitness since July 2014 until August this year.

Court documents allege Cole stole “an attorney-client privileged email” sent to Cole mistakenly, as it was intended for an attorney also named Jason Cole.

According the documents, after Cole received the email, he notified Planet Fitness’ human resources director about the error. The director instructed Cole to delete the email and “make sure” it was removed from Cole’s “mailbox system entirely.” Cole replied, “I deleted them both.” The club’s technology department checked Cole’s computer that day and confirmed the message was no longer on his computer. “The email appeared to be gone and Planet Fitness considered the matter resolved,” the documents state.

However, on July 30, court documents indicate, the subject of the email resurfaced at a meeting with Cole, the human resources director and one of the clubs’ lawyers. Cole was apparently upset due to the termination of a friend and worried he could be fired. During this conversation, he allegedly admitted he “had downloaded” the message to “his home computer and kept a copy of it.” Calling the email “damning’ from a business and political perspective,” Cole allegedly “threatened to release it publicly right before Planet Fitness went public, in an attempt to disrupt the IPO.”

Planet Fitness, headquartered in Newington, had its initial stock offering, or IPO, on Aug. 6 on the New York Stock Exchange. The fitness club, known officially as Pla-Fit Franchise, LLC, has approximately 950 franchise locations nationwide.

Court documents indicate Planet Fitness management were also concerned that Cole, as the former payroll manager, downloaded confidential documents he had access to, such as the private information of the approximately 900 Planet Fitness employees.

The restraining order directs Cole to not “use, copy, destroy, disseminate, transmit, secret, print, publish, tamper with or alter Planet Fitness’ confidential information.” It also directs Cole to return all property that belongs to the company and to “preserve and maintain” all electronic devices capable of storing information.