When it comes to the true source of a company’s value, it’s not necessarily in the products or the services they offer, nor is it in the brand they’ve carefully developed. The core of a company’s value is in the trade secrets...more
As technology continues to evolve, the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in business operations is reshaping the way we approach standard tech transactions. The traditional pillars of contract negotiation –...more
The New York Knicks just sued their former employee and his new employer, the Toronto Raptors, in a case that can teach employers a lot about trade secret misappropriation. The August 21 lawsuit accuses their Eastern...more
Employers today are coming to terms with what has developed into full-time remote or hybrid work arrangements for many workers. However, you should recognize that the rise of these work arrangements may create additional...more
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis recently signed the Combating Corporate Espionage in Florida Act into law, and it will take effect on October 1, 2021. The new law was created to protect intellectual property in Florida from...more
A thorny question which can arise on the termination of an individual’s employment relates to the individual’s ongoing duty of confidentiality to his or her former employer. A recent case brought by Trailfinders (a well-known...more
With the COVID-19 related increase in remote work, anxious employees are being increasingly targeted by cyber criminals and hackers with phishing scams, business e-mail compromise schemes, and malicious ransomware. At the...more
Millions of Americans and others around the globe have been told to work from home in order to blunt the spread of COVID-19. In short order, companies have been faced with unprecedented strain on internal networks and demands...more
A result of negotiating techniques from Donald Trump's book "The Art of the Deal" or a result of strategies from the ancient Chinese military strategy treatise "The Art of War"?...more
The US–China trade deal signed on January 15 aims to strengthen intellectual property protection for US intellectual property holders....more
There are many notable east coast-west coast rivalries. In sports (Celtics versus Lakers basketball), in leisure (Atlantic versus Pacific beaches), or in food (Shake Shack versus In-N-Out Burger), to name a few. With respect...more
Ever been frustrated by a former employee unfairly using your confidential business information and trying to take your customers? As it turns out, tattoo artists have trade secrets, too. Keith “Bang Bang” McCurdy is the...more
The purpose of this short paper is to ‘join the dots’ between a director’s fiduciary duties and especially a person holding dual or multiple directorships and trade secrets....more
Trade Secret’s New Found Prominence: As we both have written previously, the changing nature of technology, product development and sales, and the patent enforcement landscape, have given trade secrets a new-found...more
Datenschutzgrundverordnung stark im Zeichen des Datenschutzes. Viele Unternehmen hatten die Mammut-Aufgabe, die relevanten Anforderungen des Datenschutzes an die Verarbeitung personenbezogener Daten umzusetzen. ...more
Late last week, the Texas Supreme Court denied a petition for mandamus in which the petitioner sought an order compelling a plaintiff to identify the specific trade secrets it contends were misappropriated, bucking what...more
In the modern age of relatively cheap and ever-evolving technology, corporate espionage is a real threat that could be perpetrated by any employee or other insider at any time. The term “corporate espionage” covers many...more
Have you ever had a brilliant business idea, only to discover years later that someone else has beaten you to market? If you are a professional athlete, you might break your hand punching a fire extinguisher or picture frame...more
As President Trump visits China, U.S. is investigating a longstanding issue in bilateral relationship—technology transfer/intellectual property requirements—that has potential implications for trade. U.S. business and...more
Kilpatrick Townsend Partner Audra Dial recently joined other dignitaries to speak about “Business Law in the 21st Century” at the 2017 Dean Robert J. D’Agostino Symposium presented by the John Marshall Law Journal. Ms. Dial’s...more
An important part of the franchise system is the confidential operating manual. Many franchisors claim protection of operating manuals under the law of trade secrets and copyright. Keeping the contents confidential is...more