A Fairfax County, Virginia, jury in May 2022 found that Pegasystems Inc. (Pegasystems) misappropriated trade secrets from its competitor, Appian Corp. (Appian), and awarded Appian more than $2 billion in damages – the largest...more
With the issuance of the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC or Commission) much-anticipated final rule on its "non-compete ban" (see Holland & Knight's previous alert, "New FTC Rule Bans Non-Compete Agreements in All Employment...more
4/29/2024
/ Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Former Employee ,
FTC Act ,
Misappropriation ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Proprietary Information ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Trade Secrets
When trade secrets and other intellectual property disputes arise involving federal government contractors, defendants often assert that the alleged trade secret or intellectual property belongs to the government as part of...more
6/4/2021
/ Boeing ,
DFARS ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Inventors ,
Patent Ownership ,
Software ,
Technology ,
Third-Party Relationships ,
Trade Secrets
In trade secret litigation, particularly among government contractors, defenses are sometimes asserted based on whether the plaintiff actually owns or retains a sufficient interest in the trade secret at issue. This can...more
In trade secret litigation, particularly among government contractors, defenses are sometimes asserted based on whether the plaintiff actually owns or retains a sufficient interest in the trade secret at issue. This can...more
An often sought remedy in trade secret cases is unjust enrichment, which DTSA and several uniform state trade secret acts permit plaintiffs to seek for the unlawful benefit received by defendants "that is not addressed in...more
7/19/2019
/ Arbitration ,
Breach of Duty ,
China ,
Confidential Information ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Damages ,
Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) ,
Disgorgement ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Former Employee ,
Misappropriation ,
Trade Secrets ,
Unjust Enrichment
Trade secrets can be stolen at any point, and such theft can be prosecuted by the Department of Justice. This is evident in recently unsealed charges brought against a software engineer who stole source code from his United...more
7/16/2019
/ China ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Espionage Act ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Indictments ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Misappropriation ,
Source Code ,
Trade Secrets
In a recent Holland & Knight webinar, Partners Kara Ariail, Brandon Elledge, and Terry Elling discussed trade secrets and related issues affecting government contractors when employees are hired or leave. In case you missed...more
10/1/2018
/ Confidentiality Agreements ,
Data Protection ,
Data Rights ,
Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) ,
Disclosure ,
Employment Policies ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Former Employee ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Misappropriation ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Proprietary Information ,
Software Developers ,
Trade Secrets ,
Whistleblowers
The Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) provides for remedies in the form of damages, an injunction, and fees. 18 U.S.C. § 1836(b)(3). In addition to these remedies, DTSA provides for an ex parte pre-trial seizure of property....more
Prior to the federally enacted Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA), companies seeking civil remedies for misappropriation were generally limited to state law causes of action (including, where applicable, a state version of the...more
The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) on April 27, 2016, significant legislation that proposes to amend the Economic Espionage Act. The DTSA had previously passed the Senate and is...more