Protecting Confidential Information Does Not Safeguard Trade Secrets

Business, innovation and proprietary information are often the cornerstones of a companies’ success. Companies invest significant time, resources, and expertise to develop and maintain their unique processes, formulas, and strategies that provide an edge over their competitors. However, just because the information is a valuable business assets does not automatically make it a trade secret and provide the foundation for a lawsuit over its unauthorized use. In the world of trade secret protection, information is either a “trade secret” (and protectable) or it is not a trade secret (and not protectable).
Despite attempts over the years to conflate the issue, there is no middle gound. Protecting Confidential Information does not make it a trade secret. To be protected as a trade secret companies must protect their valuable information as a secret.

Trade Secret Protection

Trade Secret Protection

Trade Secret Protection allows a business to prevent unlawful disclosure or use of its proprietary information including its financial, business, scientific, technical, economic or engineering information methods and processes. Generally, to qualify the information must not be generally known and must be of value to the business.