Author Info for Orrick - Trade Secrets Group

Charles Adams

Replacing the Words “Trade Secrets” with “Confidential Information” Does Not Allow a Party to Bypass Its Obligations Under California Code of Civil Procedure Section 2019.210

In a recent discovery dispute before the Northern District of California, Plaintiff Monolithic Power Systems, Inc. (“Monolithic”) unsuccessfully attempted to bypass California Code of Civil Procedure section 2019.210 which… more

Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), Confidential Information, Intellectual Property Protection, Misappropriation, Trade Secrets

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Bradford Breen

Supreme Court Tackles Tacking Question in Hana

On January 21, 2015, the United States Supreme Court in Hana Financial, Inc. v. Hana Bank, case number 13-1211, unanimously held that in cases (1) that go to a jury and (2) whose facts do not warrant either summary judgment or… more

Hana Financial v Hana Bank, Likelihood of Confusion, SCOTUS, Tacking, Trademarks

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Michael Chow

Protecting IP in a COVID-19 Remote-Work-World

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, many employers offered remote work options. Now employers all over the world are encouraging or requiring their employees to work remote from home… more

Confidential Information, Confidentiality Agreements, Employee Training, Information Governance, Intellectual Property Protection

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Kayla Delgado Grundy

Court Upholds One Year in Prison for Theft of non-Trade Secrets

A federal district court judge in Chicago sentenced Robert O’Rourke, a former employee of iron bar manufacturer Dura-Bar, to one year and one day in prison last week for stealing trade secrets. Well, not quite. O’Rourke was… more

China, Criminal Convictions, Criminal Prosecution, Data Theft, Federal Sentencing Guidelines

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Mike Delikat

On Eve of US Independence Day, UK High Court Gives Insight on Employee Independence in Noncompetition Agreement Case

Tillman v Egon Zehnder Ltd., the first employment competition case to reach the UK’s highest court in over a century was decided on July 3, 2019, changing the landscape for noncompetition agreements in the UK… more

Competition, Employment Contract, Employment Litigation, Intellectual Property Protection, Legitimate Business Interest

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Diana Szego Fassbender

FRE 404(b) and Trade Secrets Disputes: To Admit or Deny?

In a recent decision, an Eastern District of Texas court conducted an analysis under Federal Rule of Evidence Rule 404(b) outside the criminal context to allow evidence of “other acts” in a trade secrets litigation. The… more

Evidence, Federal Rules of Evidence, Intellectual Property Litigation, Intellectual Property Protection, Trade Secrets

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Justin Giovannettone

Nosal Reply Brief Sets Stage For SCOTUS Cert Decision

The U.S. Supreme Court, which just began a new term on Monday with a full complement of nine justices, is expected to soon decide whether it will hear the appeal of David Nosal, the former Korn Ferry executive whose conviction… more

Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), Confidential Information, Criminal Prosecution, Electronically Stored Information, Former Employee

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Jacob Heath

Joint Ventures & COVID-19: How to Protect Trade Secrets when Partnering with Competitors to Meet PPE and Ventilator Demand

COVID-19 has presented countless challenges, among them, the extraordinary need—and conversely, extreme shortages—of basic protective gear, ventilators, and personal protective equipment (“PPEs”) for healthcare professionals and… more

Collaboration, Coronavirus/COVID-19, Defense Production Act, Intellectual Property Protection, Joint Venture

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Mimiao Hu

Protecting Trade Secrets In China

Trade secrets were first introduced into China law through the Article 10 of the “Anti-Unfair Competition Law of China” (effective Dec. 1, 1993)… more

Burden of Proof, China, Data Protection, Discovery, Misappropriation

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Konstantin Kasyan

June 29, 2015 Amendments to Article 183 of the Russian Criminal Code: Increased Liability for Disclosure of Trade Secrets in Russia

While Russia has long protected trade secrets through the Federal Law on Information, Information Technologies and Information Protection and the Trade Secret Law, amendments to the Russian Criminal Code on June 29, 2015 now… more

Disclosure Requirements, Fines, Russia, Trade Secrets

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Frederic Lalance

Perquisition Privée: France Ahead Of U.S. In Allowing Trade Secret Owners To Seize Property From Suspected Thieves

Can trade secret owners secretly petition a court to seize property from a competitor that they suspect of stealing trade secrets? In the United States, the answer is: “Not yet.” This is one of the issues that Congress is… more

EU, Ex Parte, Misappropriation, Search & Seizure, Theft

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Jennifer Lee

Titanic Texas Trade Secrets Verdict Contested as Colossal Collusion

A $700 million jury award for trade secrets misappropriation and fraud is the product of a collusive scheme to deceive the jury, claims title insurance and valuations provider Amrock, formerly known as Title Source, in its… more

Breach of Contract, Collusion, Fraud, Intellectual Property Protection, Misappropriation

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Julie Lee

Replacing the Words “Trade Secrets” with “Confidential Information” Does Not Allow a Party to Bypass Its Obligations Under California Code of Civil Procedure Section 2019.210

In a recent discovery dispute before the Northern District of California, Plaintiff Monolithic Power Systems, Inc. (“Monolithic”) unsuccessfully attempted to bypass California Code of Civil Procedure section 2019.210 which… more

Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), Confidential Information, Intellectual Property Protection, Misappropriation, Trade Secrets

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Catherine Lui

Court of Appeals Cites “Rule of Reason” Standard for Evaluation of Non-compete Restrictions in Commercial Agreements

Last year, the California Supreme Court held in Ixchel Pharma, LLC v. Biogen, Inc., that restraints in contracts between businesses should be evaluated using the same “rule of reason” standard that courts use to analyze… more

Employment Contract, Motion for Summary Judgment, Non-Compete Agreements, Restrictive Covenants

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Yufeng Ma

Trade Secret Misappropriation By Ex-Employees In China: How To Confront “Inside Theft”

Article 123 of the General Provisions of the Civil Law of the People’s Republic of China (effective Oct. 1, 2017) confirmed that trade secrets are intellectual property, signifying China’s recognition of the importance of trade… more

China, Intellectual Property Protection, Misappropriation, Trade Secrets

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James McQuade

Congress Aims to Restrict Use of Non-Competes Nationwide

As reported by Trade Secrets Watch last month, several states (including Maryland, Maine, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island) recently passed legislation curtailing the use of non-compete agreements. Now, the federal government… more

Confidential Information, Contract Terms, Employment Contract, Intellectual Property Protection, Labor Regulations

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Denise Mingrone

Profiting off Public Panic – Abbott Laboratories et al v. Brown

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a rise in fraud by wrongdoers seeking to profit off public panic and strained resources. One such example is asserted in the lawsuit filed by global health care company Abbott Laboratories… more

Coronavirus/COVID-19, Former Employee, Intellectual Property Protection, Trade Secrets

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Geoffrey Moss

Company’s Bacon Trade Secret Claims Are Cooked After Patent Filing

From Minnesota comes a delicious reminder that the protection of trade secrets requires consideration of a company’s entire intellectual property strategy. Without such a comprehensive strategy, in the most prosaic of terms, a… more

Breach of Contract, Business Litigation, Hormel, Misappropriation, Patents

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Chris Ottenweller

Trade Secrets And 3rd Parties: Litigation Traps To Avoid

Many companies have developed trade secrets policies to protect their valuable information, but even forward-thinking companies may not have internal controls to avoid liability as third parties to alleged trade secret… more

Contractors, Misappropriation, Third-Party, Third-Party Liability, Trade Secrets

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T. Vann Pearce Jr.

Making a Federal Case Out of It: What Does the DTSA’s “Interstate Commerce” Limitation Mean?

We’ve blogged a lot about the Defend Trade Secrets Act in the roughly year-and-a-half period since the law was enacted. Our coverage has run the gamut: from the first jury verdict under the DTSA, to the U.S. Patent and… more

Confidential Information, Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA), Foreign Commerce, Intellectual Property Litigation, Intellectual Property Protection

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Amy Ross

Hedge Fund Hack Results in Trade Secret Loss, and Raises SEC Reporting Issues

Data breaches may be nothing new, but they are certainly evolving into bigger and more notorious infractions. While the data breaches of yesterday may have involved accidental disclosure or disgruntled former employees, the data… more

Corporate Counsel, Criminal Conspiracy, Data Breach, Hackers, Hedge Funds

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Dr. Christian Schröder

A New Month, A New Compliance Deadline In The European Union: What Businesses Need To Know About The EU Trade Secrets Directive

Just days after the European Union’s widely-discussed new data privacy regulations, the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), took effect on May 25, 2018, another EU-wide legal change quietly occurred… more

Cybersecurity, Data Breach, Data Processors, Data Protection, Directive on Trade Secrets

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Lauren Seaton

Pleading “Sufficient Particularity”: Technical Trade Secrets Require More

It’s common sense that, to protect a trade secret, the information must remain secret. However, when trade secret misappropriation claims arise and litigation ensues, the court and the parties involved need to understand at… more

Amended Complaints, Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA), Dismissals, Federal Pleading Requirements, Lack of Particularity

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Robert Shwarts

Pleading “Sufficient Particularity”: Technical Trade Secrets Require More

It’s common sense that, to protect a trade secret, the information must remain secret. However, when trade secret misappropriation claims arise and litigation ensues, the court and the parties involved need to understand at… more

Amended Complaints, Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA), Dismissals, Federal Pleading Requirements, Lack of Particularity

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Caroline Simons

Supreme Court Narrows Scope of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act

The U.S. Supreme Court recently resolved a circuit split regarding the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), specifically weighing in on the “exceeds authorized access” provision of the statute. The CFAA subjects to… more

Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), Databases, Police, SCOTUS, Unauthorized Access

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Emily Tabatabai

Obama Administration Announces Cybersecurity and Privacy Initiatives

On Monday, January 12, 2015, President Obama appeared at the Federal Trade Commission to announce the administration’s blitz of cyber security and privacy legislative and public policy initiatives, which will be discussed in… more

Barack Obama, Breach Notification Rule, Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights, Domestic Policy

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Robert Uriarte

The $740 Million Jury Question: Massive Trade Secrets Award Overturned Because of Erroneous “Improper Means” Instruction

The right to a jury trial is one of the most important features of modern trade secrets law. But as a recently issued Order from the Texas Fourth Court of Appeals (“Court of Appeals”) illustrates, the jury trial right is only… more

Confidential Information, Corporate Counsel, Evidence, Intellectual Property Protection, Jury Instructions

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Amy Van Zant

Trial of Ex-Coca-Cola Principal Engineer Accused of Espionage and Stealing Trade Secrets Begins.

The trial of Xiaorang You (aka “Shannon You”)—the principal research engineer accused of stealing trade secrets from several companies, including Coca-Cola—began on April 6, 2021 in the Eastern District of Tennessee at… more

Coca Cola, Espionage, Intellectual Property Protection, Trade Secrets

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Xiang Wang

Litigate Trade Secret Misappropriation Disputes in Chinese Courts

How can trade secret misappropriation disputes be litigated in Chinese courts, despite the system’s lack of US-style discovery tools? Many companies, especially foreign companies, might be hesitant to even think about bringing… more

China, Corporate Counsel, Foreign Corporations, Intellectual Property Protection, Misappropriation

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Nicola Whiteley

Brexit’s Potential Impact for Trade Secrets in the UK

To the surprise of many and the dismay of more than sixteen million United Kingdom voters, the previously unthinkable has occurred, the UK has voted to leave the European Union. In a tightly contested referendum, voters have… more

EU, EU Directive, European Economic Area (EEA), Intellectual Property Protection, Member State

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Kristopher Wood

Wyoming Supreme Court Erases Blue Pencil Rule for Employee Non-Compete Agreements

Employee non-compete agreements have long played an important role in employers’ ability to protect confidential and trade secret information. However, recognizing the distinct advantage employers often enjoy in negotiating… more

Biden Administration, Confidential Information, Employment Contract, Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Non-Compete Agreements

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Jason Yu

FRE 404(b) and Trade Secrets Disputes: To Admit or Deny?

In a recent decision, an Eastern District of Texas court conducted an analysis under Federal Rule of Evidence Rule 404(b) outside the criminal context to allow evidence of “other acts” in a trade secrets litigation. The… more

Evidence, Federal Rules of Evidence, Intellectual Property Litigation, Intellectual Property Protection, Trade Secrets

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Shelley Zhang

Litigate Trade Secret Misappropriation Disputes in Chinese Courts

How can trade secret misappropriation disputes be litigated in Chinese courts, despite the system’s lack of US-style discovery tools? Many companies, especially foreign companies, might be hesitant to even think about bringing… more

China, Corporate Counsel, Foreign Corporations, Intellectual Property Protection, Misappropriation

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Dr. André Zimmermann LL.M.

A New Month, A New Compliance Deadline In The European Union: What Businesses Need To Know About The EU Trade Secrets Directive

Just days after the European Union’s widely-discussed new data privacy regulations, the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), took effect on May 25, 2018, another EU-wide legal change quietly occurred… more

Cybersecurity, Data Breach, Data Processors, Data Protection, Directive on Trade Secrets

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Orrick - Trade Secrets Group

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