2021 Mid-Year Review: Key Global Trade Secret Developments
A trade secret is any information used in one's business that derives independent economic value from being kept secret. Unlike patents, trade secrets are protected indefinitely for as long as they remain a secret. In the United States, the enactment of the Defend Trade Secrets Act ("DTSA") in 2016 has made trade secrets an increasingly attractive form of intellectual property for businesses hoping to protect their innovations. And in other jurisdictions, developments such as Germany's Company Secret Act and China's Anti-Unfair Competition Law are similarly refining trade secret laws.
This White Paper summarizes and explains recent noteworthy court decisions and regulatory developments in trade secret law around the world in the first half of 2021. Each of these decisions and developments has meaningful implications for trade secret owners, defendants, and practitioners alike.
