Legislation

NEW MASSACHUSETTS BILL: Promoting “Growth and Opportunity” or Poisoning the Business Environment?

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On April 10, 2014, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick proposed a bill entitled “An Act to Promote Growth and Opportunity.”  Under this lengthy bill, Massachusetts would finally adopt the Uniform Trade Secrets Act, to which only it and New York currently do not adhere.  But the provisions of the bill relating to non-competition agreements are what have received the most attention from the businesses community.

Under the proposed legislation, with the aim of increasing mobility of labor, non-competition agreements between Massachusetts employers and employees or independent contractors would be impermissible and void: READ MORE →

BACK FROM THE DEAD? Senator Wants to Resuscitate Legislation to Create a Federal Right of Action for Trade Secret Theft

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Revised post available here.

There are stirrings in the U.S. Senate of yet another bid to establish a federal right of civil action for trade secret misappropriation.

Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) has quietly circulated a draft bill to IP lawyers and others with an interest in the legislation.  The draft Protecting American Trade Secrets and Innovation Act of 2014 (“PATSIA 2014”) is the latest of several recent attempts to bring about this right. The past attempts include Sen. Coons’ own prior iteration of the bill, PATSIA 2012 (S. 3389), which never made it out of the Senate Judiciary Committee. READ MORE →

Green Chemistry and Trade Secrets: California Leads Chemical Disclosure Movement, As Companies Wrestle with Options for Protection

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Earlier this year, we picked mandatory public disclosure laws as a trend to watch in 2014.  Developments in California seem to bear that out, and trade secrets owners will want to keep a close eye on the “green chemistry” movement and expanded public disclosure requirements for manufacturers of a wide range of consumer products.  Companies that make or sell products in California — ranging from electronics and household cleaners to children’s toys and cosmetics — will need to map out a plan that complies with the new requirements while at the same time protecting their valuable intellectual property, including trade secrets. READ MORE →

Trade Secrets Watch 2013 Year-in-Review

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It’s been a hot year in the trade secrets field, with some huge verdicts and settlements, a renewed spotlight on cyberattacks, and an unusual flurry of trade secrets legislation.  Trade Secrets Watch’s 2013 Year-in-Review highlights the notable trade secrets activity from the past year. READ MORE →

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE: Senator Proposes New Bill to Create Civil Cause of Action for Foreign Theft of Trade Secrets

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Just before the Thanksgiving holiday last week, Senator Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) introduced the Future of American Innovation and Research Act, a new trade secrets bill that would allow American trade secrets owners to sue entities who misappropriate trade secrets outside the United States, or who misappropriate trade secrets on behalf of foreign entities.  The bill tracks the Uniform Trade Secret Act’s definitions of “trade secret” and “misappropriation,” and includes standard remedies of damages and injunctive relief.  One interesting addition is that it would READ MORE →

CYBERSECURITY UPDATE: New Rules Require Defense Contractors to Protect Technical Information

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The U.S. Department of Defense issued final rulemaking on November 18, 2013 that will require DOD contractors to protect from attack confidential technical information on their computer systems, and to report and cooperate with DOD in the event that this information is compromised through a cyberattack.  The rules come nearly two years after draft rules were first announced and in the midst of continuing public concern about the threat of state-sponsored trade secrets theft. READ MORE →

Uniform Protection of Trade Secrets in the EU? Hooray! Ole! Hourra!

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European Union officials have just issued a draft set of rules that would impose uniform trade secret guidelines across the EU, motivated by trade pact negotiations with the United States and concerns about state-sponsored spying, according to The New York Times.  Although the leaders of the European Commission have yet to sign off on the proposed rules, they plan to adopt them tentatively on November 27.  The rules are then subject to a long legislative negotiating process before they come into force. READ MORE →

Fracking Trade Secret Rules: A Tug of War Without Winners

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In the approximately 31 states with known reserves amenable to hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” a tug of war is being waged between an oil and gas industry seeking to protect its proprietary processes and environmental groups that want to know the secret sauce.  Because fracking was carved out of federal oversight in 2005, determining where the balance lies has been left to the states.  Not surprisingly, consensus is not the order of the day.  Trade Secrets Watch prepared a state-by-state chart that highlights the key provisions of the states currently requiring disclosure.  To view the chart, click here: flipbook / PDF.

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GERMAN TRANSLATION: Making Sense of Germany’s Criminal and Civil Trade Secret Laws

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Germans are famous for their love of order.  But German trade secret law is untidy.  Like many EU countries and like the United States, Germany has no national trade secret law per se.  Its criminal and civil laws provide for broad trade secret protection — if you know how to navigate them.

A quick primer on Germany’s trade secret laws is available here.