At the beginning of the pandemic, concerns were raised that trade secret misappropriation might take a new form. Indeed, with large swaths of the workforce working from home, spouses, roommates, or others living in the same area had an increased opportunity to purloin confidential information that might not have been available to them previously.
But a recent case in Massachusetts highlights that this is not unique to pandemic-era work-from-home setups. While the events formed the basis of the dispute in BioPoint, Inc. v. Dickhaus et al. occurred during the pandemic, the facts reveal that information sharing between employees of competitors…
The most immediate concerns after a car accident are your health and your legal obligations.
First, you should be evaluated by a physician for any injuries. Not all car accident injuries are obvious. Brain injuries can be essential invisible, and other conditions may not show symptoms for hours or days after a car accident due to adrenaline and shock.
Next, you want to collect as much information about the accident as possible. Get all relevant information such as license plate numbers, names, locations, insurance providers, and other details and organize it. If there were any witnesses present at the scene,…
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has found its first target under recent guidance issued in a memo from its General Counsel claiming that noncompete agreements may violate the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). According to Bloomberg Law, “[t]the NLRB’s first enforcement action against an employer’s noncompete agreement targeted a Michigan cannabis processor and ended with a recent private settlement resolving the alleged labor law violations.” (The enforcement action predates the guidance memo). Bloomberg obtained redacted documents from the case via a Freedom of Information Act request.
As we previously reported, on May 31, 2023, the NLRB’s top lawyer, Jennifer…
Now on Spilling Secrets, our podcast series on the future of non-compete and trade secret law:
Trade secrets and non-compete litigation can result in massive damage awards, but those cases can also be unpredictable. Many viable trade secret claims went unexplored due to financial limitations or a lack of willingness to invest in litigation.
Attorney and Spilling Secrets host Erik W. Weibust and three special guests—Epstein Becker Green’s Managing Partner, James P. Flynn; Stephanie Southwick of Omni Bridgeway; and Mary Guzman of Crown Jewel Insurance—discuss the monetization of trade secrets litigation.
* * *
Tune in to Spilling Secrets, a…
The day after obtaining federal brokerage authority for the logistics company he formed a month earlier, Christopher Johnson, a North Carolina resident, resigned from his employment with Cincinnati-based Total Quality Logistics, LLC (“TQL”). TQL then sued Johnson and his company Patriot Logistics (“Patriot”) in the Clermont County Court of Common Pleas, alleging Johnson breached his employment agreement and misappropriated trade secrets in forming Patriot while still employed by TQL.
Johnson and Patriot removed the case to federal district court based on diversity jurisdiction. TQL moved to remand the case back to state court, considering the $75,000 amount in controversy requirement…
This post was originally published to Seyfarth’s Gadgets, Gigabytes & Goodwill blog.
Last week, a joint statement was issued by four federal agencies expressing their apprehension regarding the use of AI for discriminatory or anticompetitive purposes and outlining their plans for regulation. This comes on the heels of Elon Musk requesting a “pause” in AI development and meeting with Senator Chuck Schumer to guide the statutory framework of AI management. It also comes as China and the EU unveiled their own proposed laws surrounding the regulation of AI. How will governments across the globe respond to this pivotal technology? And…
A Ruling and Order issued on April 28, 2023 by the US District Court for the District of Connecticut in United States v. Patel, et al. ran the government’s losing streak to four failed trials seeking to criminally prosecute alleged wage-fixing and no-poach agreements.
To review, in 2016 the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) issued Antitrust Guidance for Human Resources Professionals that warned of potential criminal prosecutions for so-called “naked” no-poach agreements, ie , agreements among competing businesses to restrict hiring or compensation of employees, untethered to any legitimate collaborative relationship.
Since 2020, the DOJ…
Sokoloff Lawyers are committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy outlines how we handle your personal information to protect your privacy.
Privacy Legislation:Since January 1, 2004, all Canadian organizations engaged in commercial activities have been required to comply with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (“PIPEDA”) and the Canadian Standards Association Model Code for the Protection of Personal Information incorporated by reference into PIPEDA . These obligations extend to lawyers and law firms, including Sokoloff Lawyers.
As a services firm, we have professional and ethical obligations to keep confidential the information we receive in the context of…
