This year saw not one, but two cases involving allegations of trade secret misappropriation and breach of noncompete agreements by companies typically known for things other than their trade secrets....
Like a similar post last month, this post provides a summary of noncompete and trade secret issues and cases that have arisen in the past month or so, but that I have not already addressed in recent p...
There has been much uncertainty in Massachusetts about whether and under what circumstances a claim under G.L. c. 93A (for those not from Massachusetts, that's our unfair competition statute, which pr...
This is a quick update on a significant decision issued yesterday ... The Illinois Supreme Court has rejected the controversial notion expressed in a 2009 decision from an Illinois appellate court...
Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly's Editorial Advisory Board calls the noncompete bill pending in the MA legislature "a step in the right direction." (As the lead drafter and advisor on the bill, I have co...
About two years ago, my partner Steve Riden and I wrote a blog post on my old blog (the Trade Secrets / Noncompete Blog) entitled, Back to the Basics... The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. The post wa...
This post provides a summary of noncompete and trade secret issues and cases that have arisen in the past month or so, but that I have not already addressed in recent posts. In addition to my summary,...
Your employee markets your company through Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube. The employee develops – as he or she is asked to do – a substantial network. Later, your employee leaves. Wh...
About a year a a half ago, I was curious to see how many actual reported trade secret / noncompete decisions were issued each year. So, I did a "back of the envelope" calculation. The results are here...
This post relates to the procedural practice of law (litigation, really). Although not specific to "Unfair Competition," it is particularly relevant to these issues, given the frequent comparison of C...
Unlike patents, trademarks, and copyright, there is no federal trade secret statute. Instead, each of the 50 states has its own laws. And, although most of states have adopted some version of the Unif...
Earlier today (September 15), the Massachusetts legislature’s Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development took testimony on the pending bills to reform Massachusetts noncompete law: two to...
There are basically four types of intellectual property: patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets. Here is a very brief summary of each: A patent is the right “to exclude others fro...
The Joint Committee on Labor & Workforce Development has officially announced that it will be conducting a hearing on, among other things, the Massachusetts noncompete bill on September 15. The he...
The United States District Court for the District of New Jersey recently issued a decision (Syncsort Incorporated v. Innovative Routines, International, Inc.) providing one more piece in the puzzl...
This year, we have seen several dramatic changes to noncompete laws around the country. The following are some of the highlights: California: Many people thought noncompetes were DOA with the Cal...
As those of you following the Massachusetts noncompete bill will recall, a modified version of the bill was refiled in January. (See Massachusetts Noncompete Bill Refiled.) Although the refiled bil...
The BRR 50 State Noncompete Chart has been updated today (June 26, 2011) to reflect an update to Colorado and Texas laws. Both changes reflect significant developments in the respective state's...
The central component of Texas noncompete law that separated it from the pack is that the consideration needed to support a noncompete had to be related to the legitimate business interest sought to b...
Mass trade secret statute creates significant ambiguity for employers.
While everyone else gets their information by googling it, how does Google get its information? Well, according to Pay Pal, it steals it. Just two days ago (Friday, May 27, 2011 - for those reading...
Big happenings in France (well... in the world of noncompetes, anyway). In France, noncompetes arising our of an employment relationship are similar to those in other European countries that enfor...
After months of confusion, it is now official: Georgia has a new - and valid - noncompete law. The law will apply only to noncompete agreements entered into on or after May 11, 2011, and will permit G...
The BRR 50 State Noncompete Chart has been updated today (April 12, 2011) to reflect an update to South Carolina’s handling of overly broad restrictions. Specifically, the South Carolina Supreme Co...