A Law Blog on Trade Secrets, Non-Competes, and Computer Fraud
Where hearsay and speculation form the sole basis for a complaint, summary judgment and sanctions against counsel will be the result, according to a recent decision of the Third Circuit. In Brubaker Kitchens, Inc. v. Brown, 2008 WL 2123327 (3d Cir. 2008), the Court granted defendants summary judgment and sanctioned plaintiff’s counsel because non-competition allegations against a defendant lacked…
Continue Reading Brubaker Kitchens, Inc. v. Brown: Unfounded Speculation Can Lead To Sanctions
A 49-year-old Missouri woman is being tried in Federal Court in Los Angeles for posing as a young boy and taunting a 13-year-old girl on the social networking site MySpace, leading the girl to hang herself. The woman was charged with conspiracy and violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA). This case is the first time the CFAA…
Continue Reading Missouri Woman Pleads Not Guilty to MySpace Harassment Charges
United States v. Meng, No. CR 04-20216 JF (U.S.D.C. N.D. Calif.).
Judge Jeremy Fogel of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California in San Jose today imposed a 24-month prison sentence on Xiaodong Sheldon Meng, who pleaded guilty to possessing night vision software for pilots belonging to Quantum3D, his former employer, and using that information in…
Tracy v. Winfrey, et al., No. 07-1630 (1st Cir. June 11, 2008).
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit has affirmed the dismissal of Darlene Tracy’s copyright infringement and trade secret misappropriation suit against Oprah Winfrey, Harpo Productions, and ABC Television.
In a pro se complaint filed in federal district court in Boston, Tracy alleged that she…
The recent California appellate decision, Cypress Semiconductor Corp. v. Superior Court, is instructive not just on the issue of when the statute of limitations begins to run in a trade secret matter, but also contains important language with respect to the obligations of the trade secret owner to notify good faith, third-party users of the alleged misappropriation of trade…
A California appellate court recently held that the statute of limitations for trade secret misappropriation claims against third parties who receive stolen trade secrets from others begins when the plaintiff, not the third party, suspects a misappropriation of trade secrets.
The Court stated: "We conclude that with respect to the element of knowledge, the statute of limitations on a cause…
The California Courts of Appeal recently concluded that a former employee could not have breached a duty of loyalty to his employer where he entered into competition with the employer only after leaving the company. Primetech Corp. v. Cohen, 2008 WL 1899976 (Cal. App. 4 Dist. April 30, 2008).
The plaintiff, Primetech Corporation, a supplier of aircraft parts to…
Continue Reading Primetech v. Cohen: No Duty Of Loyalty To Past Employers
By Scott Krol, New York
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently upheld summary judgment holding that a former employee did not violate the Virginia Computer Crimes Act (“VCCA”) when the former company could not prove that they were unaware of employees’ use of company funds. Further, the employee did not violate the Virginia Uniform Trade…
