Below are a few (more) interesting highlights from the American Intellectual Property Law Association Trade Secrets Summit:
1. The federal Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) is the newest tool in the toolbox for trade secrets litigators.
2. The DTSA gives litigators the option of filing suit in federal court when trade secrets have been stolen.
3. While the pleading standard in federal court is higher, the other advantages of federal court over state court typically lead the trade secret litigator to file in federal court whenever possible.
4. National subpoena power is another advantage of being in federal court in a trade secrets case.
5. State court judges are more likely to allow unlimited and free-flowing discovery. This is a possible reason to file in state court, rather than federal court, especially if the plaintiff does not have strong, direct evidence of misappropriation and needs discovery to find evidence in discovery to prove the validity of the claim.
6. If you hire an employee from a competitor and learn the employee has taken trade secrets, you need to move quickly to ensure the information does not make its way onto your IT system. If the information has already made its way onto your system, have it quarantined.
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.
