Trade Secrets
Ourย Trade Secret Services Team blends the talent of our seasoned investigative and litigation attorneys with the technical sophistication of our intellectual property team and the wide-ranging knowledge of our labor and employment law attorneys to assist our clients with designing, implementing and achieving their trade secret protection goals.
With the increasing difficulty of protecting software and other computer-implemented technologies through patents, and the passage of the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) in 2016, companies across diverse industries have been relying more on trade secrets to protect their proprietary information and intellectual property.
Our team has the experience to handle all aspects of trade secret protection including:
- counseling clients on best practices for protecting their own trade secrets and managing risk associated with onboarding new employees;
- drafting related policies and procedures;
- conducting investigations of our own clientsโ documents and systems as well as those of competitors to identify theft of trade secrets;
- negotiating efficient resolutions with individuals and companies who have violated our clientsโ trade secrets, and,
- bringing and defending substantial trade secret and related claims in arbitration, state and federal courts around the country, and the International Trade Commission (ITC). ย
We have forged strong relationships with foreign counsel to assist our clients with obtaining or enforcing relief that may span international borders.ย Members of our team also have extensive government experience, including the oversight of the investigation and prosecution of trade secrets by foreign countries and their proxies as Chief of the Counterintelligence and Export Control Section at the Department of Justiceโs National Security Division.
The regimes of patent protection and trade secret protection, in many ways, rest on opposite foundational philosophies โ whether to opt to disclose your invention and seek patent protection orโฆ A Trade Secrets article co-authored by Wiggin and Dana Partner Joseph Casino and Associates Thomas Landman and Rikesh Patel has been published by the American Bar Association. To read theirโฆ On August 12, 2020, John Demers, the head of the National Security Division (NSD) at the Department of Justice (DOJ), spoke publicly about national security threats from China at anโฆ Wiggin and Dana Partner Michael J. Kasdan has co-authored an article titled, โThe Six Stages of Trade Secret Misappropriation Protection,โ with David L. Cohen, Esq., President of David L. Cohen,โฆ Partners David Laufman, Joseph Casino and Michael Kasdanโs most recent article about the increase in theft of U.S. companiesโ trade secrets and other intellectual property by Chinese entities has beenโฆ Wiggin and Dana Partners Lawrence Peikes and Michael J. Kasdan co-authored an article titled, โLimitations and Best Practices for Using Non-Competition Agreements to Protect Company Trade Secretsโ. This article wasโฆ Partners Kenneth Cho and Michael Kasdan have co-authored an article for IAM titled, โTrade secret dispute between LG Chem and SK Innovation shows power of the ITC.โ To read theirโฆ Wiggin and Dana attorneys Michael Kasdan, Kevin Smith and Benjamin Daniels co-authored, โRecent Cases Offer Clues to Successful Trade Secret Claims,โ which appeared in Law 360 on December 20, 2019โฆ. Wiggin and Dana attorneys Michael Kasdan, Kevin Smith and Benjamin Daniels co-authored, โTrade Secrets: What You Need to Know,โ which appeared in The National Law Review on December 12. ToโฆPublications
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Experience
Representative examples of our experience include:
- Obtained $3.5 million judgment for a global industrial leader as part of a business dispute in federal court involving trade secret misappropriation claims and counterclaims.
- Successfully defended and resolved theft of trade secret, violation of non-disclosure agreements, and related claims in federal action against emerging technology company and principals arising out of business dispute over mobile vending technology.
- Defeated a preliminary injunction application in a federal court proceeding involving claims for breach of restrictive covenants and misappropriation of trade secrets thereby freeing up highly successful sales executive to take on key high-level role with our clients after leaving position with direct competitor.
- Successfully resolved a federal trade secret litigation on behalf of a financial services company against an employee who stole confidential client lists and other trade secrets to start his own company.
- Assisted several companies in conducting internal investigations concerning the theft of intellectual property through insider threats or cyber intrusions.
- After filing suit alleging employee stole trade secret customer list and started competing business with infringing trademarks, obtained a settlement forcing new company to change its name, admit to the theft of trade secret, and enjoin further access to the customer list.
- Successfully counseled client who received allegations of trade secret misappropriation in connection with hiring new employee, resulting in de-escalation of the dispute.
- Successfully assisted client in pursuing federal trade secret theft claims against a Chinese company that stole the design of aircraft windows from a US glass manufacturer.