IBM has been ordered to post a bond of $3m in case the company's lawsuit attempting to prevent former vice president of Blade Development, Mark Papermaster, joining Apple is proven without merit.

Apple announced earlier this month that Papermaster, a former senior executive at IBM, would join Apple as senior vice president of Devices Hardware Engineering. However, IBM took issue with Apple hiring Papermaster and launched a lawsuit to block the move.

IBM claims Papermaster's move to Apple would damage the company as he has knowledge of "significant and highly confidential IBM trade secrets". A US court has issued an injunction preventing him from working for Apple until the case could be settled.

Papermaster has countersued his former employer, and claims that when he accepted the job at Apple, he signed an Intellectual Property Agreement in which he agreed not to disclose "confidential, or proprietary, or secret information" of IBM.