Posts by: Tierra Piens

If trade secrets misappropriation claims can be brought by non-owners, what should companies do to manage risk?

Caroline Simons and Tierra PiensPosted on May 20, 2020

Last week, we examined the recent Third Circuit decision in Advanced Fluid Systems, which held that a trade secrets plaintiff did not need to be an owner or a licensee of the alleged trade secrets to bring a state law misappropriation claim under Pennsylvania’s UTSA—all that was required was that the plaintiff had “lawful possession” of the trade secrets. In so holding, the Third Circuit added to the weight of the Fourth Circuit’s similar analysis of Maryland’s UTSA in DTM Research, L.L.C. v. AT&T Corp., 245 F.3d 327 (4th Cir. 2001).

Kittens, Stephen Curry, and Cryptocurrency: This Trade Secrets Case Has It All.

Mark Mermelstein and Tierra PiensPosted on August 1, 2018

What do kittens, three-time NBA Finals champion Stephen Curry, and cryptocurrency have in common?

On May 7, 2018, a subsidiary of Launch Labs, a Canadian corporation doing business as Axiom Zen, released cryptocollectibles called “CurryKittens.” Cryptocollectibles are unique, digital tokens created using blockchain technology. The CurryKittens, a type of Cryptocollectible, were virtual kittens with the likeness of NBA star Stephen Curry. The CurryKittens were three of many virtual cats that could be securely bought, sold, traded, and bred on the multimillion dollar- generating CryptoKitties platform. (An image of the now suspended “CurryKittens” can be found here.) READ MORE →

Worse Than a Toothache: Dental Executive Alleged to Have Misappropriated Proprietary Business Leads

Vann Pearce and Tierra PiensPosted on December 29, 2017

Earlier this month, a Nashville, Tennessee company filed a federal lawsuit against its former employee alleging trade secrets misappropriation under the Defend Trade Secrets Act, among other claims. The plaintiff, Marquee Dental Partners, LLC, operates dental offices in Tennessee, Alabama, and Kentucky. Marquee purchases existing dental practices and provides administrative services to those practices allowing the doctors and support staff to focus on clinic services and patient care. In a particularly strongly-worded introductory sentence, the complaint reads: “This case shows what it means to be a faithless corporate executive.” READ MORE →

USE IT OR LOSE IT! Enforce Your Arbitration Agreement or Waive Your Right To Arbitrate Your Trade Secret Misappropriation Claims

Tierra PiensPosted on November 9, 2017

Earlier this month, a federal court in the Middle District of Tennessee denied an employer’s motion to compel arbitration, finding that it waived its right to arbitration by engaging in litigation. READ MORE →

EVEN BAMBI IS A TRADE SECRET: Eastern District Of Texas Finds That Lineage and Genetic Information of Deer Are Trade Secrets, Grants Preliminary Injunction

Michael Weil and Tierra PiensPosted on July 28, 2017

As surprising as it may be to city dwellers, the deer farming industry generates $3 billion per year for the U.S. economy. According to the North American Deer Farmers Association, “deer farming is one of the fastest growing industries in rural America.” The corollary of the deer farming industry is a burgeoning deer breeding industry. As a court in the Eastern District of Texas recently noted, the “deer breeding industry is a potentially lucrative industry with single straws of buck semen selling for $5,000 to $20,000 on average, and ranging all the way up to $1 million to purchase the entire buck.” READ MORE →

Trade Secrets Watch