Applied Systems v. Comulate
On November 21, 2025, Applied Systems filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois against Ardent Labs, Inc., d/b/a Comulate (“Comulate”) and PBC Consulting Inc. (“PBC”) for fraudulently and unlawfully accessing Applied’s technologies to reverse engineer and misappropriate Applied’s valuable trade secrets in order to accelerate their product development. On January 2, 2026, we amended our complaint to add new claims including unjust enrichment and violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, alleging Comulate accessed Applied’s protected computer systems without authorization.
As part of standard legal process, we expect several motions and filings. We are committed to providing our customers and the broader industry with regular updates on the status of the cases, and we will use this page to provide access to public court filings.
Filings & Statements
January 22, 2026
Response to Comulate’s Latest Illinois Complaint
Applied's Statement
We are aware of Comulate’s latest filing in Illinois federal court, which brings their case into the same jurisdiction of our initial claim, after Comulate abandoned its lawsuit in Delaware. Their latest filing recycles the same claims and new false allegations such as asserting Applied plans to shut down its ecosystem and is conspiring with other vendors like Ascend. These assertions are patently false. Applied will continue to support a vibrant ecosystem of third-party companies. And our relationship with Ascend, which includes no financial arrangement, was formed following our initial lawsuit filing to give our customers choice to manage this transition with minimal business disruption.
Despite Comulate’s attempt to reinterpret the record, the facts have not changed: Comulate lied, cheated, and stole from us, and we look forward to holding them accountable in court. Applied welcomes fair competition but will not tolerate outright theft.
December 18, 2025
Court Ruling on Motion for Temporary Restraining Order in Delaware Chancery Court
Applied's Statement
We are pleased with the Delaware court’s decision not to support Comulate’s request for a Temporary Restraining Order. The court also reaffirmed Applied’s existing position to support Comulate integration with Applied Epic for current joint customers until the end of Q2 2026.
As part of the hearing and in a public statement, Comulate admitted that they fabricated a fake insurance agency, PBC Consulting, Inc., to access Applied’s systems in a fraudulent manner for product development purposes. Read the transcript here. These facts are at the heart of our initial lawsuit, and Applied has filed a preliminary injunction and request for expedited discovery considering these admissions.
November 21, 2025
Applied Systems Sues Comulate for Fraud and Misappropriation of Trade Secrets
Applied's Statement
Applied Systems filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois against Ardent Labs, Inc., d/b/a Comulate and PBC Consulting Inc. for fraudulently and unlawfully accessing Applied’s technologies to reverse engineer and misappropriate Applied’s valuable trade secrets in order to accelerate their product development.
Amended Complaint Filed - January 02, 2026
Contact Us
For customer inquiries, please contact Rich Cohan, Chief Legal Officer, at rcohan@appliedsystems.com. For media inquiries, please contact FGS Global at appliedsystems@fgsglobal.com or Courtney Rains, Chief Marketing Officer, at crains@appliedsystems.com.