LOS ANGELES – March 2, 2020 – Global law firm Greenberg Traurig, LLP released Episode 18 of the Trade Secret Law Evolution Podcast, titled “The Value of Explaining What Your Trade Secret Does, Reasonable Efforts to Maintain Secrecy, and 'Improper Means.’”
The episode and the full catalog of recorded episodes are approved for CA self-study CLE credit.
In Episode 18, Greenberg Traurig Shareholders Jordan D. Grotzinger and Ashley M. Farrell Pickett discuss how explaining what your trade secret does may bolster trade secret identification, along with reasonable efforts to maintain secrecy and how they may help to establish “improper means” for purposes of misappropriation.
Key takeaways include:
- Trade secret identification, which can sometimes be challenging, can be bolstered by explaining what the trade secret does.
- Putting your initials on a document allegedly containing your trade secrets and telling people not to share it are not enough to maintain secrecy. You need a contract, encryption, password protection, or some concrete measures you can cite to show that you took reasonable efforts to maintain secrecy
- To show misappropriation, which generally requires disclosure or acquisition by improper means, you need to show that the Defendant breached some agreement or policy, or otherwise acted in bad faith. Have those measures in place. They not only help to establish efforts to maintain secrecy, but sometimes can be the basis of misappropriation (absent corporate espionage or some direct form of stealing).
The Trade Secret Law Evolution Podcast is designed to help business leaders, in-house counsel, and entrepreneurs stay current on trade secret law, to help them protect their companies’ most valuable assets. Each episode addresses recent developments in the law and concludes with key takeaways. The podcast is available on the Greenberg Traurig website, as well as on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Spotify.
The Trade Secret Law Evolution Podcast was created by Grotzinger, who co-chairs Greenberg Traurig’s Los Angeles Litigation Practice. Grotzinger is a business trial lawyer focusing on trade secret law, consumer class action defense, financial services, and entertainment litigation in federal and state courts.
Links to select prior episodes:
- Choice of Law, Trade Secret Identification, Supporting Independent Economic Value and More
- What Trade Secret Identification Really Means, Consent to Disclosure, and Sufficiency of Evidence
- Soaring Litigation Costs, What to do About it, Proving That Your Asset is a Trade Secret, and Keeping it That Way
- The Year in Review
About Greenberg Traurig, LLP: Greenberg Traurig, LLP (GT) has approximately 2,200 attorneys in 41 locations in the United States, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. GT has been recognized for its philanthropic giving, diversity, and innovation, and is consistently among the largest firms in the U.S. on the Law360 400 and among the Top 20 on the Am Law Global 100. Web: www.gtlaw.com Twitter: @GT_Law.
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