Departing employees. Intensifying competition. Tightening IP budgets. The current economy presents these harsh realities. For some companies, patents are only a small part of the IP assets, and long-term trade secrets remain critical to success. Successfully maintaining trade secret protection of know-how, soon-to-be-patented IP, and other results of R&D efforts can be critical.
This briefing provides information about the current state of California law as well as proven strategies to account for and protect trade secrets. Recent court decisions have made it clear that California companies cannot rely on noncompete agreements to stop inventors and other employees from joining the competition. Identifying and accounting for the company’s trade secrets are critical for enforcement and asset valuation.
Guest Panelists:
- David E. Foster, Assistant General Counsel for Intellectual Property, Actel Corporation
- Shawn Pilkington, Executive Vice President of Business Development, Innovation Asset Group
- Diane Wilcock, Ph.D., Director of Intellectual Property, XOMA (US) LLC.
The discussion was led by Foley Partners George C. Best, a member of the firm’s IP Litigation and Appellate Practices, Nancy J. Geenen, a member of the firm’s IP Litigation and Bankruptcy & Business Reorganizations Practices, and Foley Of Counsel Robert E. (Bob) Camors, Jr., a member of the firm’s IP Litigation Practice.
Key topics included:
- Protecting trade secrets under California law
- State of the law on noncompete provisions and other aspects of employment agreements
- Methods and tools for trade secret management