Julia Milewski

Blogs: Retail & Consumer Products Law Observer, Trade Secrets Trends

Latest Articles

Scientist Pleads Guilty to $1 Billion in Trade Secret Theft

November 15, 2019

Chinese national and materials scientist Hongjin Tan has pled guilty to stealing from his former employer Phillips 66 (“Phillips”) more than $1 billion in trade secrets related to next generation battery technology. DOJ announced Tan’s guilty plea this week which revealed that he copied substantial research and development files that he knew contained protected company trade secrets. Only one day after copying the confidential files, Tan submitted a notice of resignation to Phillips and informed…

Trade Secrets Trends

Dueling Claims: Trade Secret Theft or Antitrust Threat?

By Helen Osun & Julia Milewski

November 14, 2019

On November 5, 2019, Black Knight Inc. brought suit in Florida state court against PennyMac Loan Services LLC (“PennyMac”) alleging breach of contract and trade secret misappropriation under the Florida Uniform Trade Secrets Act. PennyMac allegedly used its access to Black Knight’s trade secrets and other confidential information relating to its proprietary mortgage servicing software platform (“MSP”) to work with third party software engineers and improperly develop an imitation mortgage-processing system. PennyMac purportedly did so…

Trade Secrets Trends

Imitation Is Not Sincerest Form of Flattery for Legal Services Company

By Michelle Onibokun & Julia Milewski

October 17, 2019

Legal services company CBX Law, LLC doing business as Latitude (“Latitude”) brought a lawsuit against alleged copycat company Lexikon Services, LLC in Tennessee state court. Latitude is seeking damages and injunctive relief based on allegations of trade secret misappropriation under the federal Defend Trade Secrets Act and Tennessee’s Uniform Trade Secrets Act, breach of contract, intentional interference, and unjust enrichment. Latitude alleged that it identified Austin, Texas as a primary target for expanding its operations…

Trade Secrets Trends

Trade Secret Battle Between Two South Korean Competitors Heats Up

By Molly A. Jones & Julia Milewski

October 16, 2019

Two South Korean competitors are locked in a heated battle over alleged theft of trade secrets relating to electric vehicle (“EV”) lithium-ion battery technology which is an industry expected by experts to generate over $23 billion in revenues by 2027. The story starts back in April when LG Chem brought a lawsuit against SK Innovation in Delaware federal court and a parallel action before the United States International Trade Commission (“ITC”) alleging trade secret misappropriation…

Trade Secrets Trends

Confidentiality of Trade Secrets in Arbitration

By John Laird & Julia Milewski

August 21, 2019

After posts considering confidentiality protections under the EU Trade Secrets Directive 2016/943 when litigating in various jurisdictions, we next turn to how these issues arise in the context of arbitration. Where trade secrets are protected by a contract, an opportunity arises for parties to consider alternative dispute resolution mechanisms including arbitration and whether to adopt express rules in arbitration that protect confidentiality.…

Trade Secrets Trends

The Expansion of Confidentiality Protections in Trade Secret and IP Cases in the Netherlands and Belgium

By Judith Bussé, John Laird & Julia Milewski

August 19, 2019

In our next post on the EU Trade Secrets Directive 2016/943, we turn to the Netherlands. In the Netherlands, the EU Trade Secrets Directive was implemented in 2018 by the Act on the Protection of Trade Secrets (Wet bescherming bedrijfsgeheimen) and led to amendments to Dutch procedural law including those related to confidentiality clubs. For example, access to alleged trade secrets introduced in proceedings is granted to at least one person of the opposing party and…

Trade Secrets Trends

English Confidentiality Protections in Trade Secret and IP Cases

By John Laird & Julia Milewski

August 15, 2019

The EU Trade Secrets Directive 2016/943 contains a variety of confidentiality protections expressly protecting the publicity of the proceedings because “[t]he prospect of losing the confidentiality of a trade secret in the course of legal proceedings often deters legitimate trade secret holders from instituting legal proceedings to defend their trade secrets, thus jeopardising the effectiveness of the measures, procedures and remedies provided for. For this reason, it is necessary to establish, subject to appropriate safeguards…

Trade Secrets Trends

Supreme Court Weighs In On Protecting Trade Secrets and Confidential Information From FOIA Requests

By Akhil Sheth & Julia Milewski

August 9, 2019

In Food Marketing Institute v. Argus Leader Media, the Supreme Court strengthened the federal government’s ability to protect trade secrets and confidential business information from disclosure in response to a Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) request. Food Mktg. Inst. v. Argus Leader Media, __ U.S. __, 139 S. Ct. 2356, 2366 (June 24, 2019). Under the facts of that case, the Court held that where the government received a third-party’s commercial and financial information and…

Trade Secrets Trends

Trade Secret Implications For Pay Scale Provisions

By Jillian Ambrose & Julia Milewski

August 5, 2019

Pay equity continues to be one of the most significant workforce issues facing employers today. Pay equity laws aim to increase transparency into employers’ pay practices – with the ultimate goal of ensuring that employees are paid fairly regardless of demographic factors including race and gender. However, they may also require employers to release sensitive, propriety information about internal pay practices – which arguably constitute trade secrets – potentially compromising employers’ ability to remain competitive in hiring…

Trade Secrets Trends

Luxembourg Implements the Trade Secrets Directive

By Judith Bussé & Julia Milewski

July 23, 2019

On June 28, 2019, the Luxembourgish Mémorial published the Law of June 26, 2019 on the protection of undisclosed know-how and business information better known as trade secrets implementing the EU Trade Secrets Directive 2016/943 after a one year delay. The recent Luxembourgish Law is a literal transposition of the EU Directive and provides a legal definition of “trade secrets,” which was up until now only defined by the courts. The EU Directive defined “trade…

Julia Milewski

Scientist Pleads Guilty to $1 Billion in Trade Secret Theft

Dueling Claims: Trade Secret Theft or Antitrust Threat?

Imitation Is Not Sincerest Form of Flattery for Legal Services Company

Trade Secret Battle Between Two South Korean Competitors Heats Up

Confidentiality of Trade Secrets in Arbitration

The Expansion of Confidentiality Protections in Trade Secret and IP Cases in the Netherlands and Belgium

English Confidentiality Protections in Trade Secret and IP Cases

Supreme Court Weighs In On Protecting Trade Secrets and Confidential Information From FOIA Requests

Trade Secret Implications For Pay Scale Provisions

Luxembourg Implements the Trade Secrets Directive

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