On February 10, the U.S. International Trade Commission (“ITC”) issued a final determination finding South Korean lithium-ion electric vehicle battery maker SK Innovation misappropriated the trade secrets of its Korean competitor LG Chem in violation of Section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930.  The ITC issued a 10-year exclusion order blocking SK’s imports into the U.S. of lithium-ion batteries and related products, but with substantial exceptions: SK is permitted to continue importing these products…

2020 saw a marked uptick in unfair import investigations at the International Trade Commission (ITC), with an especially strong close to the year: eight new complaints in December alone brought the year’s total to 62 new complaints to the Commission, well above the ten-year average of 49. Complaints alleging trade secret misappropriation rose particularly, as the ITC becomes increasingly popular due to its speed, jurisdiction and unique remedies.  While just five investigations solely of trade…

On January 11, Mayor Muriel Bowser signed “The Ban on Non-Compete Agreements Amendment Act of 2020” (the “Act”).  Though some other states and municipalities have restricted the use of non-compete agreements, the District of Columbia’s new ban – once it is applicable – will go further than similar laws in any other jurisdiction.  With few exceptions, employers in the District of Columbia will not be allowed to include non-compete provisions in employment agreements…

Today’s blog post is the second in a series where we spotlight international issues in trade secret law, in particular, answering practical questions and providing insights into the application and interpretation by Belgian courts of specific aspects of the Belgian Trade Secrets Act. Today’s post addresses two questions:…

Today’s blog post is the first in a series where we spotlight international issues in trade secret law, in particular, answering practical questions and providing insights into the application and interpretation by Belgian courts of specific aspects of the Belgian Trade Secrets Act. On August 24, 2020, a dedicated few celebrated the second anniversary of the entry into force of the 2018 Belgian Trade Secrets Act.[i] With this new law, the Belgian legislator transposed…

As companies have pivoted to remote-working, it is increasingly important to pay attention to the risks of videoconferencing, particularly when trade secrets are involved. In a recent case, the Delaware Chancery Court ruled that Plaintiffs did not take reasonable steps to protect their trade secrets because they did not implement appropriate privacy measures on their Zoom calls.…

On December 20, 2020, the US Senate unanimously passed a new bipartisan bill designed to punish foreign individuals and corporations involved in intellectual property theft. The Protecting American Intellectual Property Act was co-authored by Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., and Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md.  The bill requires a report to Congress every six months identifying: any individual or firm that has engaged in, benefitted from, or materially assisted the significant theft of U.S. trade secrets,…