September 2019

Cross-posted from the Carpe Datum Law blog. 

In our May blog post, we took issue with the broadcast statement that ‘consumer privacy law was sweeping the country and that other states were jumping on the California Consumer Privacy Law (CCPA) bandwagon to enact their own state law.’ The problem as we saw it, was that the truth behind these sensationalistic statements was a bit more nuanced than people were led to believe. Most states, we found, that introduced consumer privacy legislation simply did not follow through, either by outright killing the legislation (MS) or by taking a step back with a wait and see approach (see TX). Nevada, by contrast, did neither. Instead, its legislature enacted its own consumer privacy solution, through SB 220, or as we call it, ‘the limited privacy amendment.’ We’ve opted to discuss Nevada’s approach here primarily because of its more restrictive application online and because its October 1, 2019, operational date is a full three months before the CCPA becomes operational.

First, the limited privacy amendment is not the CCPA. Let’s make that perfectly clear. True, it was modeled on the opt-out section of the CCPA, but it isn’t a mirror copy as it amends existing law. There are three primary areas operators conducting business over the Internet need to be aware of, when evaluating compliance measures:  
Continue Reading Nevada: Bucking the Wait and See Approach to Consumer Privacy Law

Seyfarth Partner J. Scott Humphrey is presenting the “Trade Secrets Theft: A Holistic Approach to Protect Your Company” webinar for The Knowledge Group on Wednesday, October 2 from 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

At this webinar, a seasoned panel of thought leaders and professionals will provide and present to the audience an in-depth analysis of the fundamentals on
Continue Reading Seyfarth Partner J. Scott Humphrey to Present “Trade Secrets Theft: A Holistic Approach to Protect Your Company” Webinar

In an a recently published opinion, the Ninth Circuit answered the question whether “LinkedIn, the professional networking website, [may] prevent a competitor, hiQ, from collecting and using information that LinkedIn users have shared on their public profiles, available for viewing by anyone with a web browser?” In affirming the trial court’s injunction enjoining LinkedIn from blocking hiQ’s access to its users’ public profiles, the Ninth Circuit held, among other things, that hiQ’s scraping did not amount to accessing LinkedIn’s users’ data “without authorization,” in violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (“CFAA”), because the data hiQ was accessing was publicly available and therefore did not fall within the scope of the CFAA.
Continue Reading 9th Circuit Takes Narrow View of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act in LinkedIn Data Scraping Case

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana recently held that, under the Defend Trade Secrets Act, 18 U.S.C. § 1836, et seq., information included in a patent application remains an actionable trade secret, thereby extending the time for potential misappropriation until the patent’s publication.

DTSA

The DTSA was enacted in 2016 to expand trade secret law beyond its traditional roots as a state law doctrine, creating the first federal cause of action for trade secret misappropriation. To succeed in bringing a DTSA claim, a plaintiff must prove (1) the existence of a trade secret; (2) the misappropriation of a trade secret by another; (3) and the trade secret’s relation to a good or service used or intended for use in interstate or foreign commerce. Additionally, the owner must take reasonable measures to keep the trade secret a secret. 18 U.S.C. § 1836(b)(1).
Continue Reading Louisiana Federal Court Rules Information in Patent Application Remains Actionable Trade Secret Under DTSA

Seyfarth’s Trade Secrets, Non-Competes & Computer Fraud Group is proud to announce that Seyfarth partner Katherine Perrelli is now a co-chair of the group. She joins partners and co-chairs Michael Wexler and Robert B. Milligan as leaders of the group.

Ms. Perrelli is the former Seyfarth Litigation Department Chair, and she regularly represents clients nationally and presents on trade secrets
Continue Reading Leadership Update! Katherine Perrelli New Co-Chair of Seyfarth’s Trade Secrets, Non-Competes, and Computer Fraud Group

Seyfarth Partner Erik Weibust was recently named as a co-chair of the Restrictive Covenants/Tortious Interference Subcommittee of the American Bar Association Litigation Section.

The Restrictive Covenants/Tortious Interference Subcommittee is part of the Business Torts & Unfair Competition Committee. The Committee and Subcommittee focus on keeping business litigators fully informed on issues and trends regarding fiduciary duties, fraud, unfair trade practices,

Continue Reading Erik Weibust Co-Chairs the ABA Litigation Section’s Restrictive Covenants/Tortious Interference Subcommittee

On August 23, 2019, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued its long-awaited opinion in Klocke v. Watson, 17-11320, 2019 WL 3977545, at *1 (5th Cir. Aug. 23, 2019), holding that the Texas Citizens Participation Act (“TCPA”) does not apply to diversity cases in federal court. This decision settles a split manifested across dozens of cases at the district courts.

By ruling that the TCPA does not apply to diversity cases in federal court, the Fifth Circuit foreclosed an otherwise potent weapon used by defendants throughout Texas in trade secrets litigation. Because of the TCPA’s extremely broad application, defendants in trade secrets cases, for example, often asserted that claims alleging the misappropriation of trade secrets and related causes of action were based on and related to the defendant’s freedom to speak freely on all topics, including the trade secrets at issue, and its freedom to associate with competitors, and therefore such claims should be dismissed under the TCPA. Such arguments are now foreclosed by this ruling, at least in federal court.
Continue Reading Fifth Circuit Holds the TCPA Does Not Apply to Federal Court Diversity Cases