Among a company’s most valuable assets is confidential information that provides a competitive advantage in the marketplace. Trade secret protection is a powerful method for safeguarding this information, and in some cases, it may be the only appropriate means of doing so. We advise clients on the identification of trade secret information, and the establishment, maintenance and enforcement of programs to protect this information. We also counsel on effective use of trade secret assets in licensing programs.

Information often qualifying as trade secrets include customer lists, formulae, computer programs, manufacturing processes, know-how, marketing and other business strategies, algorithms and inventions for which patent applications have yet to be filed. Owners of this confidential information, taking the required affirmative steps, use trade secret protection as a competitive advantage in the marketplace, often with unlimited duration.

We help clients identify and protect valuable trade secrets through strategic counseling, transactional work and litigation. We conduct intellectual property audits and work with clients to develop trade secret protection programs that ensure that all necessary steps are taken to safeguard this information. These steps include developing and enforcing invention disclosure policies, confidentiality agreements, non-compete and non-solicitation agreements, employee assignment of inventions agreements, and policies and procedures with respect to physical and electronic security measures.

If a trade secret has been compromised or misappropriated, our attorneys counsel clients with respect to damage control and the enforcement of their rights in the information. Trade secret issues often come into sharpest focus when an employee leaves a company to start another or work for a competitor. Such cases raise trade secret issues for all parties involved. We regularly provide strategic counseling and litigation services to clients who find themselves in these circumstances.

We provide practical and creative advice with respect to leveraging trade secrets to profit from the competitive advantage in the marketplace they represent, while continuing to properly protect the information. We regularly advise clients on the issues raised when transacting in trade secrets, including in the context of know-how transfers, mergers and acquisitions, and the negotiation of non-disclosure and licensing agreements.

Contact: Annemarie Hassett