SPA, BELGIUM - AUGUST 24: Debris flies in the air as Nico Rosberg of Germany and Mercedes GP makes contact with Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP during the Belgian Grand Prix at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps on August 24, 2014 in Spa, Belgium. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)
Debris flies in the air as Nico Rosberg of Germany and Mercedes GP makes contact with Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP during the Belgian Grand Prix at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps on August 24, 2014 in Spa, Belgium. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)

Mercedes is suing an employee it has accused of stealing confidential data ahead of a move to Formula 1 rivals Ferrari, a source from the German car manufacturer told AFP overnight.

A filing at London's High Court shows that Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains (HPP) is taking legal action against engineer Benjamin Hoyle, who is due to join Ferrari at the start of next year.

HPP is calling for Hoyle, an employee since 2012, to be prevented from joining Ferrari or another F1 team until the end of the 2016 season.

A management source from Mercedes's F1 team told AFP the move was “strictly defensive” and designed to protect its intellectual property rights as it has no evidence that information has been transmitted to Ferrari.

Mercedes is demanding that Hoyle hand over all documents relating to the matter and be prevented from using any of the information in his possession.

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