By Robert Milligan and Jessica Mendelson Today is the deadline for public comments requested by the Obama Adminstration on any proposed changes to federal law to combat trade secret theft. Some legal commentators have proposed several suggested changes to improve America’s trade secrets laws, including creating a federal civil cause of action for trade secrets misappropriation and clarifying that the Economic… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: China
If a Company in China Steals Your Trade Secrets, Do You Have to Litigate Your Lawsuit in China? Maybe…
Posted in Data Theft, Trade SecretsThe theft of trade secrets by foreign companies, especially those in China, from American companies is a hot topic among lawmakers and in the press. A recent opinion from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals dealt a blow to the ability of American companies to bring lawsuits in the United States for trade secret theft in… Continue Reading
President Obama Signs Economic Espionage Act Amendments That Significantly Enhance The Penalties For Trade Secret Theft By Foreigners
Posted in Data Theft, Espionage, LegislationOn January 14, 2013, President Obama signed the Foreign and Economic Espionage Penalty Enhancement Act of 2012. The Act enhances the penalties for certain violations of the Economic Espionage Act. The purpose of the Act was to amend title 18, United States Code, to provide for increased penalties for foreign and economic espionage. Under the Act,… Continue Reading
Using the International Trade Commission to Address Trade Secret Misappropriation Occurring Abroad
Posted in Espionage, Practice & Procedure, Restrictive Covenants, Trade SecretsBy Matthew Werber The Federal Circuit caught the attention of the ITC and trade secret litigators alike when it ruled in TianRui Group Co. v. ITC that the ITC can exercise its jurisdiction over acts of misappropriation occurring entirely in China. The Commission initiated Investigation No. 337-TA-655 based on allegations that TianRui and a group of… Continue Reading
New Federal Trade Secrets Legislation Proposed
Posted in Espionage, Practice & Procedure, Trade SecretsBy Jessica Mendelson and Robert Milligan On July 17, 2012, Democratic senators Herb Kohl (Wisconsin), Sheldon Whitehouse (Rhode Island), and Chris Coons (Delaware) introduced legislation which they believe will aid American companies in effectively combating the theft of trade secrets. The proposed legislation, known as the Protecting American Trade Secrets and Innovation Act of 2012(“PATSIA”), will allow… Continue Reading
You Think Trade Secrets Are Important? So Does the FBI
Posted in Espionage, Trade SecretsThe FBI recently launched an initiative to curb the growing rise of trade secret and other intellectual property theft. The FBI estimates that U.S. companies have suffered over $13 billion in economic losses since October 2011 attributed to intellectual property theft, which includes the estimated future market value of stolen trade secrets. With a website dedicated… Continue Reading
New Federal Trade Secret Bill Introduced
Posted in Trade SecretsU.S. Senators Herb Kohl (D-WI) and Christopher Coons (D-DE) introduced an amendment to the Currency Exchange Rate Oversight Reform Act yesterday aimed at protecting American trade secrets and innovation. Currently, Title 18 of the US Code only permits the Attorney General to bring a civil action in federal court for trade secret theft. The amendments would… Continue Reading
Taiwanese Company Publishes Newspaper Ads to Protest Chinese Court’s Delays in Trade Secrets Case
Posted in Trade SecretsBy Erik Weibust (Boston) Illustrating the roadblocks that Taiwanese companies still must overcome to do business in mainland China (Taiwan split from China amid a civil war in 1949), Forbes.com is reporting that electronics giant Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. recently took out half-page ads in major Taiwanese newspapers complaining about delays in a… Continue Reading
Defendant Sentenced in Espionage Case
Posted in Espionage, Practice & Procedure, Trade SecretsJudge Leoni Brinkema (E.D. Va.) sentenced Gregg W. Bergersen to almost five years in prison for his role in providing secret information about U.S.-Taiwanese military relationships to a Chinese spy. According to Matthew Barakat, writing for the Associated Press, View Article, the Chinese spy (Tai Kuo) fronted as a New Orleans furniture salesman who was… Continue Reading