What is a Trade Secret?

Unlike patents and trademarks, you do not protect trade secrets from trade secret infringement by registering them with the government. Trade secrets are largely protected by state statutes modeled after the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (UTSA). Under the UTSA, your business can protect its information as a trade secret under trade secret law if:

the information is one of the types eligible for trade secret protection (such as a formula, pattern, compilation, program device, method, techniques, or process);
the information provides your business with independent economic value by not being generally known and not being readily ascertainable; and

you take reasonable efforts to maintain the secrecy of the information.

The recently passed Defend Trade Secrets Act aims to make state laws governing trade secrets more predictable by establishing rules at the federal level. The Act has broadened the definition of trade secrets and gives companies the option to pursue civil actions related to their misappropriation in federal court. The Act also protects whistleblowers from retaliation after disclosing a trade secret to an attorney or government official. Furthermore, trade secret owners can now seek an order to seize allegedly stolen trade secret assets without prior notice. The Act applies broadly to any transaction or relationship involving a company with American assets or ties, including their hiring and firing procedures.

If there is no public disclosure of the trade secret, trade secret protection will continue indefinitely. However, once you make a trade secret public, even accidentally, anyone can use it. You can protect trade secrets from disclosure under trade secret law by implementing non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) with employees and third parties with whom you engage in business.

The Law Office of Bennett C. David can help protect your business from unauthorized disclosure and use of trade secrets and can help advise you on when to use an alternative form of intellectual property protection to secure your trade secret.

For more information regarding Trade Secret protection, please contact the Law Office of Bennett C. David to schedule a consultation.