David M. Pitcher
Steps to take to secure company information from misappropriation will vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, which is why it’s important to speak with a knowledgeable intellectual property professional before setting up a structure to protect your company’s trade secrets. Below, we outline six key steps you may wish to consider before discussing with your attorney.
The Statistical Analysis of Trade Secret Litigation in Federal Courts found that confidentiality agreements with employees and business partners were most frequently examined when courts were reviewing the extent of a company’s efforts to protect their trade secrets. This would suggest that companies who created confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements, established physical and electronic security, and consistently assessed risks are the best positioned to recover in the event of an incident.
Companies were generally viewed favorably when they went the extra mile to back up their NDAs and confidentiality agreements with specific procedures that would further safeguard their intellectual property. Such procedures included marking documents as confidential or asking employees to leave confidential information at work.
Companies who took the time to identify the information that needed to remain confidential, and then documented that information in an internal registry, were generally found to be taking the appropriate precautions. In addition, companies who addressed where the possible leaks and breaches might occur were deemed particularly responsible.
Having your vendors, employees, and contractors sign an NDA agreement isn’t always enough to guarantee your trade secrets are protected. Companies who go the extra mile to effectively train for best practices in what’s most likely to result in misappropriation of trade secrets are generally considered to be reasonably executing due diligence over their intellectual property.
Rather than having broad trade secret protections in place, companies should have cross functional teams addressing their intellectual property goals and trade secret protections. This is often achieved when key team members are tasked with regular meetings, frequent oversight reviews, and have implemented procedures in the event a breach occurs.
Companies should prioritize frequent reviews of their intellectual property framework and determine whether they’re working as they must be. Frequent reviews of policies and procedures - especially when a company is in a growth stage - are paramount.
For the past 30 years, Mr. Pitch has been in private law firm practice specializing exclusively in intellectual property matters. He has assisted clients in many different technology areas for manu...
