Statute of Limitations

At Risk: Law Firms Bringing Bad Faith Trade Secrets Claims

Companies get anxious when key employees leave to start new ventures. A company may try to shield itself from the risk of losing confidential information by seeking an injunction preventing its former employees and their new company from using or disclosing trade secrets. However, without sufficient evidence of actual misappropriation or threat of imminent harm, a company may face sanctions for bringing a misappropriation claim in bad faith, as Trade Secrets Watch has previously discussed. Filing or maintaining a premature misappropriation action carries other risks. Currently before the California Supreme Court is a malicious prosecution claim against a law firm for pursuing a meritless misappropriation suit. Parrish v. Latham & Watkins, LLP, No. S228277 (Cal. petition for review granted Oct. 14, 2015). READ MORE

Eleventh Circuit: Restaurant’s Stolen Recipe Claims are Stale

It should be obvious that if you want trade secret protection, you shouldn’t wave your purported trade secret around in public. Likewise, if you see someone openly disclosing your trade secret on television, you should probably do something about it.

This is the scenario that arose in a recent case between two Miami fine-dining restaurants called Mr. Chow and PhillipeREAD MORE