Panera declined to comment beyond the lawsuit.

“It’s my deepest wish to not be in this situation with Panera,” Shaich told the Post-Dispatch Thursday. “We had no option but to ask the courts to step in and declare that people have the ability to work where they want and insist that Panera abide by what it has already agreed to.”

Shaich’s Act III is the management company that has stakes in fast-casual restaurant concepts Tatte Bakery and Café, Cava Mezze Grill, Zoe’s Kitchen and Life Alive Organic Café. Panera’s lawsuit calls Act III a “direct competitor” of Panera.

The dispute centers around three employees — James Dobson, Krish Gopalakrishnan and James “Kyle” Phillips, all of the St. Louis area. Panera’s suit names the three as defendants and argues that technology is what has given the company an edge in the fast-casual restaurant market.

“If a competitor was able to hire someone like Dobson, Gopalakrishnan, or Phillips, they would have inside information into Panera’s specific plans and strategies regarding its implementation of highly proprietary technology-driven initiatives that focus on improving the customer experience,” Panera’s lawsuit says.