On Oct. 14, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court held in Daikin Applied Americas Inc. v. Russo, that a trade secret plaintiff that shows a likelihood of success on the merits is not entitled to an automatic presumption of irreparable harm when seeking a preliminary injunction. The court held that, even with a strong liability case, the plaintiff must still prove irreparable harm under ordinary equitable principles.
The decision resolves what had been an uncertain question under Massachusetts law. The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts had applied such a presumption in several decisions, while other federal appellate courts, including the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Seventh and Tenth Circuits, have expressly rejected it. The decision is also among the SJC's first to address the Massachusetts Uniform Trade Secrets Act, which took effect in 2018.
For litigants on both sides of a trade secret dispute, it offers several lessons.
LINKS
Read "Mass. High Court Raises Bar For Trade Secret Injunctions," authored by Gregory S. Bombard for Law360. (subscription)