On January 5, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission announced its proposal of a new rule that would ban employers from imposing noncompete clauses on their workers and invalidate nearly all existing noncompetes currently in effect. According to the FTC, this
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Maine Magistrate Recommends Dismissal of Defense Against Trade Secrets Claim
The inevitable disclosure doctrine is a concept rooted in common law that allows a plaintiff to prove trade secret misappropriation by “demonstrating that defendant’s new employment will inevitably lead him [or her] to rely on plaintiff’s trade secrets.” PepsiCo., Inc.…
Not Immune From Misappropriation: Companies Fight Over COVID-19 Vaccine Intellectual Property
At the height of the pandemic, companies and governments around the world scrambled to develop and distribute COVID-19 vaccines. One such relationship involving HDT Bio, a Seattle-based biotechnology company, and Emcure, one of India’s largest manufacturers and distributors of generic…
No Award of Attorneys’ Fees for Claims Filed Without Factual Support
In 1992, Elizabeth Elting and Philip R. Shawe founded TransPerfect Global, Inc. (“TransPerfect”), a provider of language and technology solutions for businesses around the globe. When Ms. Elting wanted to dissolve her relationship with TransPerfect, the company held an auction…
Licensing Terms Can Undermine Efforts to Protect Trade Secrets
A company claiming trade-secret misappropriation must show that it took reasonable measures to keep secret its information. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit’s recent decision in Turret Labs USA, Inc. v. CargoSprint, LLC, No. 21-952, 2022 WL…
Virtual Trials Increase Courtroom Access but Also Risk Trade Secret Disclosures
For better or for worse, virtual civil trials—a product necessitated by the pandemic—are likely here to stay. Proponents of virtual civil trials laud the virtual format, in part because it provides participants with opportunities for greater engagement. For example, jurors…
Recent Trade Secret Enforcement Cases Highlight Need to Specify Protective Measures Undertaken to Protect Trade Secrets
Companies in highly competitive industries often consider trade secrets to be their crown jewels. It is essential that companies understand that, in order to succeed in litigation over trade secret information, they must be able to articulate “reasonable measures” taken…
Texas Supreme Court Gives New Life to Dismissal of Misappropriation Claim
In 2016, Sanchez Oil and Gas Corporation, Sanchez Energy Corporation, and Sanchez Production Parts LP (collectively “Sanchez”) sued three former employees—B.J. Reynolds, Mark Mewsha, and Wes Hobbs—and their new employer, Terra Energy Partners, LLC (“Terra Energy”) (collectively “Defendants”) for misappropriation…
The Cost of Litigating “the Largest and Most Complex Case”: The Northern District of Illinois Awards over $34 Million in Attorneys’ Fees to Motorola
On October 15, 2021, Judge Charles Ronald Norgle, of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, awarded Motorola Solutions, Inc., and Motorola Solutions Malaysia SDN (collectively “Motorola”) $34,244,385.50 in attorneys’ fees from defendant Hytera Communications Corporation…
Court Dismisses Computer Fraud and Abuse Act Conspiracy Claim in Trade Secrets Case under the Intra-Corporate Conspiracy Doctrine
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California recently dismissed a conspiracy claim under the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), 18 U.S.C. § 1030(b), even while finding a likelihood of success on the merits of plaintiff’s trade…