Trade Secrets in Employment Litigation: Defend Trade Secrets Act and State Law

Course Details
- smart_display Format
On-Demand
- signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level
- work Practice Area
Employment and Workers Comp
- event Date
Tuesday, March 17, 2020
- schedule Time
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
- timer Program Length
90 minutes
-
This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
This CLE course will prepare employment litigators to pursue trade secret misappropriation cases against former employees and/or their new employers. The panel will focus on recent developments impacting trade secret litigation, including emerging trends under the Defend Trade Secrets Act and new state laws restricting or limiting the use of non-competition agreements. The panel will also outline litigation strategies, including obtaining ex parte seizure orders and preliminary injunctions.
Faculty

Ms. Mendelson's practice focuses on trade secrets litigation and employee mobility issues. Prior to joining Paul Hastings, she practiced trade secret, trademark, and copyright litigation in the intellectual property department of a boutique firm in Los Angeles. Ms. Mendelson received her law degree from UC Hastings College of the Law in 2011. During law school, she served as an extern to the Honorable Judge Marilyn H. Patel of the Northern District of California. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in History, with honors, from Brown University in 2007. Ms. Mendelson is admitted to practice law in California.

Ms. Senger practices in the firm’s Litigation Department and is a member of the firm’s Labor & Employment Practice Group. In 2019, she was recognized as a “Rising Star” for Labor and Employment Disputes by The Legal 500.
Description
The ease of accessing, storing, and transmitting electronic data significantly increases the risk of misappropriation of a company's trade secrets by a departing employee. Under the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA), employment litigators have a tool in their arsenal for pursuing legal action against former employees and/or their new employers for trade secret misappropriation.
The DTSA gives employers the right to file private trade secret theft civil cases against employees in federal court and, more significantly, allows employers to forcefully recover misappropriated trade secrets from former employees through ex parte seizure orders.
Employment litigators must be savvy about pursuing ex parte seizure orders, and preliminary injunctions. Counsel also must also guide clients in developing clear, consistent trade secret protection policies and practices, and a strategic approach to dealing with departing employees.
Listen to our program as we examine the latest trends in trade secret misappropriation lawsuits and strategies for employment litigators. The panel will also explain upfront steps employment counsel should take to prevent the loss of confidential company information before a key employee leaves to work for a competitor.
Outline
- Trade secret misappropriation litigation trends
- Employer litigation strategies
- Ex parte seizure orders
- Preliminary injunctions
- Proactive steps to prevent trade secret misappropriation by departing employees
Benefits
The panel will review these and other high priority issues:
- Trends in trade secret misappropriation lawsuits
- Strategies for pursuing trade secret misappropriation litigation against former employees and/or their new employers
- Proactive steps for preventing the misappropriation of trade secrets from departing employees
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