To understand the difference between pursuing a trade secret and a patent, think for a moment about the pharmaceutical industry and Coca-Cola. A popular beverage for decades, Coca-Cola's classic recipe is one of the most famous examples of a trade secret in...
Trade Secrets
Trade secret litigation challenges First Amendment speech rights
Trade secrets gain a competitive edge over the competition. Companies will guard that advantage under lock and key and make employees sign non-disclosure agreements (NDA's). But what happens when a trade secret appears in a newspaper, newsletter or website?...
Protecting your business brand
Launching a new business is only one step toward success. Understanding your rights and the methods to protect your brand is vital for longevity. All business owners should review the documents required to ensure their brand is safe from potential threats, both...
3 exit interview strategies to protect your trade secrets
In competitive fields like media and marketing, it's crucial for companies to protect their trade secrets. This often involves the use of secure storage and strong encryption. But how do companies manage when an employee departs, particularly from a firm that deals...
What qualifies as a trade secret and how can it be protected?
Many successful businesses have trade secrets that set them apart from their competitors. It may be a recipe or formulation, a process or technique or a device used in your process or service. Common trade secrets might be Kentucky Fried Chicken's original recipe, the...
Key elements to prove trade secret theft
Many entrepreneurs, just starting on their journey, may not give much thought to safeguarding their trade secrets. Only to realize their significance later when someone else started benefiting from their hard work. For example, a small tech startup develops a...
Oregon Case Sheds Light on the Role of an Employee’s Memory in Trade Secret Misappropriation
Trade secrets are essential to a competitive market. So, too, is the ability to protect those secrets by taking legal action. Under Oregon law, “trade secret” means a company’s valuable information that is actively protected by the company to maintain its secrecy....
Trade secrets: The fourth kind of intellectual property
The term “intellectual property” brings to mind patents, copyrights and trademarks. Those core protections cover a vast amount of information. And for many businesses, intellectual property (IP) is among their most valuable assets. Another valuable type Another type...
