Dear Clients and Friends,
2011 was a successful year for our Trading Secrets blog. Launched in 2007, the blog has continued to grow in both readership and postings. Content from Trading Secrets has appeared on newsfeeds such as Lexology and iTechLaw, IP.com’s “Securing Innovation” Blog, and Kevin O’Keefe’s “Real Lawyers Have Blogs,” one of the leading sources of information and commentary on the use of blogs. We are pleased to provide you with this 2011 Year in Review which compiles our significant blog posts from 2011 and highlights our blog’s authors. For a general overview, we direct you to our Top 10 2011 Developments/ Headlines in Trade Secret, Computer Fraud, and Non-Compete Law blog entry (pages 13-18) as well as our 2011 Trade Secrets Webinar Series – Year in Review blog entry (pages 30-36) which provide a summary of some of the key cases and legislative developments in 2011, as well as practical advice on maintaining trade secret protections.
As the specific blog entries that are contained in this Review demonstrate, our blog authors stay on top of the latest developments in this area of law and provide timely and entertaining posts on significant new cases, legal developments, and legislation. In 2012, we plan to increase the frequency of our postings by including more authors (including special guest authors (e.g. law professors, clients, and forensic experts), enhancing the visual effectiveness of posts (e.g. more pictures, charts, and video), as well as provide resource material (e.g. applicable statutes, significant cases and links, and webinars) on the blog.
In addition to our blog, Seyfarth’s dedicated Trade Secrets, Computer Fraud, and Non-Competes group hosts a popular series of webinars, which address significant issues facing clients today in this important and ever changing area of law. In 2011, we hosted six webinars: Trade Secrets in the Financial Services Industry, The Anatomy of a Trade Secret Audit, Georgia’s New Non-Compete Statute, Managing and Protecting Trade Secrets in the Brave New World of Cloud Computing and Social Media, Choosing the Right IP Protection: Patent, Trade Secret or Both?, and Key Considerations Concerning Trade Secrets and Non-Competes in Business Transactions. For those who missed any of the programs in 2011’s webinar series, the webinars are available on compact disc upon request and CLE credit is available for attorneys licensed in Illinois, New York or California. If you are interested in receiving CLE credit for viewing recorded versions of the 2011 webinars, please e-mail CLE@seyfarth.com to request a username and password.
We kicked off the 2012 webinar series with a program entitled, “Employee Privacy, Social Networking at Work, and the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act Standoff,” and had over 1000 registrants. More information on our upcoming 2012 webinars is available in program listing contained in this Review. Our highly successful blog and webinar series further demonstrate that Seyfarth Shaw’s national Trade Secrets, Computer Fraud & Non-Competes Practice Group is one of the country’s pre-eminent groups dedicated to trade secrets, restrictive covenants, computer fraud, and unfair competition matters. For more information, please sign up for our mailing list and our RSS feed. Also, if you are interested in a copy of the Year in Review in hard copy or cd, please contact us.
Thank you for your continued support.
Michael Wexler
Chicago Partner and Practice Group Leader
Robert Milligan
Los Angeles Partner and Blog Editor