On May 11, 2016, President Barack Obama signed the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 (DTSA), providing a federal civil cause of action for the misappropriation of trade secrets under the Economic Espionage Act. Both the Senate and House of Representatives passed the DTSA with near unanimous support in April.

For companies with trade secrets “related to a product or service used in, or intended for use in, interstate or foreign commerce,” the DTSA provides the following important provisions, among others...