Lawsuit is filed vs. Data Domain in EMC bidding war

EMC Corp. of Hopkinton has found a new ally in its bid to buy Data Domain Inc.

Attorneys for the Police & Fire Retirement System of the City of Detroit have filed suit against the Data Domain board in a Delaware court, saying it was wrong to reject EMC's $1.8 billion all-cash bid for the company.

The lawsuit, filed last week, says that the Data Domain board failed in its responsibility to shareholders by embracing a $1.9 billion cash and stock offer from EMC rival NetApp Inc.

"They agreed to the NetApp merger without following even the most basic process for informing themselves of the best available transaction," the lawsuit said.

Beata Farber, a partner at Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann LLP, one of the two law firms representing the shareholders, said, "They believe that Data Domain could get a much better offer for shareholders of the company."

Farber said her clients want the Delaware court to issue an injunction to prevent Data Domain and NetApp from completing their deal.

A spokesman for Data Domain declined to comment on the lawsuit.
(By Hiawatha Bray, Globe staff)