Senate Passes the Defend Trade Secrets Act
In November 2015, Jones Day issued a White Paper titled "Are Federally Protected Trade Secrets on the Horizon? Key Things to Know about the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2015," providing a detailed analysis on the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2015 ("DTSA"). In January 2016, Jones Day issued an Alert titled "Senate Judiciary Committee Approves the Defend Trade Secrets Act," providing an update on the bill as approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee with various amendments.
On April 4, 2016, the full Senate passed the DTSA, in the form described in our January 2016 Alert, by a vote of 87–0. The situation is unchanged in the House of Representatives, where the bill is still pending in the House Judiciary Committee as originally described in our November 2015 White Paper, when the House and Senate had identical bills. For the differences between the Senate bill as passed and the current House bill, please refer to our January 2016 Alert describing the amendments made in the Senate prior to passage.
It is not known when the House will take further action. Jones Day will continue to monitor and report on any significant developments.
