Trade Secrets: Definition and Protection
A trade secret is protected by keeping it confidential. Measures can include: requiring employees to sign agreements, keeping the information secure, and limiting access.
Trade secrets last as long as the information stays confidential and protected. What is "reasonable" varies. Examples of measures: marking information confidential, limiting access physically and technologically, entering non-disclosure agreements prohibiting unauthorized use, reviewing which employees need to know, and creating a culture focused on confidentiality.
Examples of Trade Secrets
Examples of trade secrets: Google’s search algorithm, the Coca-Cola formula.
Trade Secret Protection and Enforcement
If disclosed publicly, a trade secret loses protection. Reasonable steps to maintain secrecy are important.
Penalties for misappropriating a trade secret include civil damages or criminal fines/imprisonment.
Protecting Trade Secrets: Best Practices
To protect trade secrets: identify them, limit access, use physical and cybersecurity, have employees sign agreements. Maintaining secrecy ensures economic benefit.
The Coca-Cola formula is a closely guarded trade secret.
It takes 3-5 years to bring a trade secret claim, depending on state law. Businesses should show they protected the secret via reasonable efforts, like locking information in a vault. Sharing with trusted employees is usually fine.
Trade Secrets vs. Other Intellectual Property Rights
A trade secret is information protected by confidentiality, like the Coca-Cola formula. Trade secrets last indefinitely if kept secret via reasonable measures like non-disclosure agreements. Protecting trade secrets involves steps like limiting access and using security systems. Unlike patents, registering trade secrets is unnecessary. If publicly disclosed, protection ends. Remedies for misuse include damages or fines. To protect trade secrets: identify them, restrict access physically and digitally, have employees sign agreements. Maintaining secrecy provides economic benefits. It takes years to bring a claim, needing to show reasonable protection efforts. Sharing with trusted employees is typically acceptable.
FAQs on Trade Secrets
During a patent or copyright application, the secret itself must be disclosed, potentially destroying trade secret protection. Copyright ownership doesn’t necessarily confer rights to use. Missing trademarks or having patent problems are disadvantages of intellectual property rights.
Laws protecting trade secrets vary by state, with some relying on common law torts. The Uniform Trade Secrets Act provides model legislation. Copyrights and trade secrets can intersect to protect software code as both an artistic work and a secret process, but registering the work may forfeit trade secret protection.
How long can a trade secret be protected? There’s no limit to the length of time your company can keep a trade secret. For most types of patents, the patent is granted for 20 years.
Note: Some content has been omitted for clarity and conciseness.