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Trade Secrets › Breach of Duty

A Trade Secret is any information, not generally known or easily ascertainable, by which an enterprise develops an economic advantage over competitors or customers. In order to maintain trade secrets'... more +
A Trade Secret is any information, not generally known or easily ascertainable, by which an enterprise develops an economic advantage over competitors or customers. In order to maintain trade secrets' protected legal status, enterprises must make reasonable efforts to keep the information secret and prevent unnecessary disclosure.  Trade Secrets may include processes, formulas, methods, designs, patterns, et cetera.   less -
McDermott Will & Emery

Jury Trial on Legal Issue Denied, But No Harm Done

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The US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed a district court’s denial of a jury trial, concluding it was harmless error because the defendant would have been entitled to a directed verdict regardless. Overwell...more

Proskauer - Trade Secrets

Employee Mobility and Trade Secrets in the Golden Era of Life Sciences Innovation

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The life sciences sector is in its “golden era” of innovation with the convergence of disciplines—including genetics, immunology, cell biology, and artificial intelligence—changing the speed, efficiency, and cost at which...more

Kohrman Jackson & Krantz LLP

Protecting Your Company’s Confidential Information: Takeaways from Meta’s Lawsuit Against Its Former Employee

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Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and other products, recently filed a lawsuit in a California state court against a former vice president for allegedly taking confidential information from Meta...more

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard,...

What do you have to Show to Prove that Someone Misappropriated Trade Secrets?

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What must you show to prove that someone misappropriated trade secrets? The Arkansas Uniform Trade Secrets Act provides that misappropriation of trade secrets can be shown in one or more of three ways: acquisition or physical...more

Proskauer - Minding Your Business

CA Federal Court Awards Biomedical Companies $62M Following Jury Trial Involving Confidentiality-Related Claims

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On November 1, 2023, a jury in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California awarded damages to Skye Orthobiologics, LLC (“Skye”) and Human Regenerative Technologies, LLC (“HRT”) for breach of contract,...more

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

Court of Chancery Finds Officer Liable for Competing With Corporation and Misappropriating Trade Secrets

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On September 1, 2023, Vice Chancellor Paul A. Fioravanti, Jr. of the Court of Chancery delivered a decision finding that the president of a plaintiff company and a second business the president had formed and served...more

Vondran Legal

Arizona trade secret law

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Most states have a law that protects trade secrets. California, for example, has CUTSA (California Uniform Trade Secret Act). Arizona has the Arizona Uniform Trade Secrets Act ("AUTSA") found in chapter 4 of title 44 of the...more

Hendershot Cowart P.C.

Shareholder Actions: Direct Vs. Derivative Suits

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When it comes to protecting their interests – or the interests of the corporation – shareholders have unique rights to take legal action. They can file suit either on behalf of the corporation itself, known as a derivative...more

Winstead PC

Employee’s Fiduciary Duty May Not Be Limited To His Or Her Employer

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​​​​​​​In Trench Tech Int’l, Inc. v. Tech Con Trenching, Inc., the son of an owner of a company, who was an employee, downloaded design plans and other information and went to another company who used that information. No....more

Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP

Massachusetts Court Bars “Reasonable Royalty” Evidence Based on Law of the Case Doctrine

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After successfully appealing a judgement and obtaining a remand of its Chapter 93A claim to the Massachusetts BLS, the Governo Law Firm moved to admit expert testimony about a “reasonable royalty” measure of damages. Governo...more

Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP

Third Circuit Reverses Injunction in Trade Secret Misappropriation Suit

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The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit took on the misappropriation of trade secrets recently, reversing a district court’s grant of a preliminary injunction halting competition by a company’s rival and two...more

McDermott Will & Emery

The Plot Plot Thickens: Trade Secret, Tortious Interference, Fiduciary Duty Claims Survive Motion to Dismiss

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A judge from the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit sitting by designation in the US District Court for the District of Delaware denied a motion to dismiss claims of misappropriation of trade secrets, tortious...more

McDermott Will & Emery

Trade Secret Misappropriators Fail to Launch in Rocket Facility

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Addressing a variety of challenges to a judgment against defendants in a trade secret misappropriation action, the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit found that the plaintiff had standing on the basis of lawful...more

Proskauer - Law and the Workplace

Third Circuit Recognizes Trade Secret Misappropriation Claim by Party Possessing (But Not Owning) the Trade Secret

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It is not often that a United States Court of Appeals issues a decision on trade secrets, much less one involving the review of a bench trial that drew legal conclusions on the scope of trade secret law and the propriety of...more

Winstead PC

Court Holds That The Cost To Create A Distributor List Was Sufficient Evidence of Damages for A Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claim

Winstead PC on

In In re Amerisciences, a bankruptcy trustee sued a bankrupt company’s former officers for breach of fiduciary duty regarding the theft of trade secrets. No. 18-20394, 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 20635 (5th Cir. July 11, 2019). ...more

Holland & Knight LLP

Pennsylvania’s “Gist of the Action” Doctrine Does Not Preclude Trade Secret Claims

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Pittsburgh Logistics (PL) sued its competitor and former employee, alleging that the employee breached his employment agreement by working for the competitor and that he would inevitably disclose PL's confidential and trade...more

Holland & Knight LLP

“Head Start” Damages Affirmed Against Employee Who Started Competitor in China

Holland & Knight LLP on

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

Spilman Thomas & Battle, PLLC

Trade Secret Misappropriation and Employee Fiduciary Breach in ASML v. XTAL Results in Large Judgement

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On May 3, 2019, following a jury verdict rendered last November, a Santa Clara, California court entered a final judgment for $845 million in favor of semiconductor maker, ASML, in its suit against rival, XTAL, for stealing...more

Adler Pollock & Sheehan P.C.

Noncompetes with Massachusetts Employees: Subsidizing a Former Employee’s “Garden Leave”

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Effective October 1, 2018, employers in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and other states seeking to hold Massachusetts employees to noncompete agreements must meet the requirements of a new law passed by the Massachusetts...more

Shook, Hardy & Bacon L.L.P.

Zillow Sues Rival Compass Alleging IP Theft And Breach Of Contract Over Its Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, And Cloud...

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Switching from defense to offense, Zillow Group, Inc., best known for its residential real estate marketplace technology, recently filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington alleging a...more

Butler Snow LLP

Court Allows Company to Surreptitiously Monitor Former Employee’s Social Media Account to Support its Trade Secrets Claim

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A federal court of appeals recently found that there was nothing wrong with a company monitoring a departed employee’s Facebook account and using that information to pursue a trade secrets claim against four former employees....more

Allen Matkins

Court Concludes CUTSA Does Not Preempt Breach Of Fiduciary Duty Claim

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The California Uniform Trade Secrets Act (CUTSA) provides various remedies for misappropriation of a trade secret (as defined). The legislature, however, was "vexingly oblique" in prescribing the effect of CUTSA on common law...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Fed Seeks to Bar Two Bankers for Life for Stealing Confidential Information

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After being slapped with a post-trial judgment last April totaling $2.2 million for misappropriation of confidential and proprietary information, two Wyoming bank executives were named in an unprecedented “Notice of Intent to...more

McAfee & Taft

Ruling offers guidance for companies seeking injunctions to protect trade secrets

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Customers, trade secrets, and proprietary information are the lifeblood of any company. For this reason, companies routinely have employees sign confidentiality agreements and, to the extent they are enforceable,...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Pennsylvania Federal Court Finds That Plaintiff’s Trade Secret Misappropriation Allegations Hold Up

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A Pennsylvania federal court recently denied Defendant Synchrony Group, LLC’s motion to dismiss a trade secret lawsuit filed by Plaintiff Jazz Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Jazz”) holding that Plaintiff sufficiently stated a trade...more

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