Trade secrets continue to be a hot topic in legislative circles in Western countries. While the U.S. Congress is considering the creation of a federal trade secrets statute, the European Commission and Counsel has been considering a directive on trade secrets to member countries.
The European Public Health Alliance (EPHA), a multi-sector NGO coalition, recently expressed its opposition to the proposed directive. EPHA views the proposed law as a threat to health, environment, free speech and worker mobility. EPHA expresses concerns about (a) the broad definition of trade secrets in the proposed law, (b) what EPHA considers to be overly broad protections for companies and (c) what EPHA considers to be inadequate safeguards that will not ensure EU consumers, journalists, whistleblowers, researches and workers have reliable access to data they consider to be important and in the public interest.
A link to an article about EPHA’s statement can be found here: www.epha.org/a/6264.
It will be interesting to see how the European trade secrets directive proceeds in light of this opposition.
Benjamin Fink is known for his work in noncompete, trade secret and competition-related disputes. A shareholder at Berman Fink Van Horn, Ben concentrates his practice in business and employment litigation.
