by M. Tom Langan, II
President Obama recently signed into law legislation that creates a federal civil remedy for the misappropriation of trade secrets. Trade secrets are a form of intellectual property that consist of a business’s methods, designs, formulas, and other confidential or proprietary information that helps a business obtain economic advantages over its competitors. While there were federal remedies for misappropriation of other forms of intellectual property (i.e. trademarks, patents, copyrights etc.), trade secrets were not protected at the federal level until now. The Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2015 offers a variety of remedies, from monetary penalties to injunctive relief to even seizure orders – all designed to stop the unlawful dissemination of trade secrets. There is a 3 year statute of limitations to bring a claim based off when the misappropriation is discovered or should have been discovered based off a reasonable investigation.
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