Seyfarth attorneys published in IP LitigatorSeyfarth partner Jesse Coleman and associate Kevin Green authored an IP Litigator article focused on a recent DTSA/TUTSA lawsuit which involved the public disclosure of alleged trade secret in an expired patent. Read the full article from the March / April 2022 edition of IP Litigator here.
Continue Reading Seyfarth Attorneys Author Article on Texas Trade Secret Lawsuit

After a four day bench trial on August 10, 2021, a Houston federal judge ruled that the conceptual designs an oil and gas manufacturing company disclosed to its erstwhile collaborator under an NDA were not eligible for trade secret protection because they were neither secret nor misappropriated due predominantly to disclosure in a prior public patent. The ruling underscores the necessity that trade secrets are—in fact—kept actually secret. Moreover, any prior patent of the party seeking to protect its trade secrets should be scrutinized for similarity with the technology or information allegedly comprising a trade secret.
Continue Reading Texas Oil & Gas Manufacturing Company’s DTSA/TUTSA Lawsuit Unraveled by Public Disclosure of Alleged Trade Secret in its Own Expired Patent

Robert Milligan, Seyfarth Partner and Co-Chair of the Trade Secrets, Computer Fraud & Non-Competes Practice Group, is a speaker for the “Closing Plenary – Mid-Year Updates and Ethics of Inventorship of AI Patenting” session at the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) Mid-Winter Institute on February 4 at 9 a.m. Pacific, in Rancho Mirage, California.

Robert Milligan is on the
Continue Reading Robert Milligan to Speak at AIPLA Mid-Winter Institute on Developments in Trade Secrets Law

Seyfarth attorneys Kate Perrelli, Sierra Chinn-Liu, Anne Dunne, Joshua Salinas, and Paul Yovanic contributed to this year’s ABA Section of Intellectual Property Law, Trade Secrets and Interferences with Contracts Committee Annual Trade Secret Law Report.

The Annual Report, found here, covers the significant trade secrets cases from around the country that were decided in 2019 and 2020. The
Continue Reading Seyfarth Shaw Attorneys Contribute to ABA’s Annual Trade Secret Law Report

Please join the Trade Secret Committee of the American Intellectual Property Law Association, which is chaired by Seyfarth partner Erik Weibust, for Part I of its Trade Secret Master Series: How to Settle Trade Secret Disputes with Jim Pooley. The event will be held virtually on March 9, 2021 from 12:30-1:30 p.m. Eastern.

Trade secret disputes are the messy divorces
Continue Reading Join the AIPLA Trade Secret Committee for a Trade Secret Master Class: How to Settle Trade Secret Disputes

Seyfarth partner Erik Weibust was recently named Co-Chair of the Trade Secret Committee for the Boston Patent Law Association (BPLA), Boston’s premier intellectual property organization for attorneys. This follows on the heels of Erik’s recent appointment as Chair of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) Trade Secret Committee.

The goal of the BPLA is to provide educational programs and
Continue Reading Erik Weibust Named Co-Chair of Boston Patent Law Association’s Trade Secret Committee

Seyfarth partner Erik Weibust was recently named Chair of the Trade Secret Committee for the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA).

The AIPLA Trade Secret Committee considers the laws, practices, and judicial decisions relating to unfair competition, including the protection of trade secrets and other data maintained in confidence, interferences with contractual relationships, trade libel and slander. The Trade Secret
Continue Reading Erik Weibust Named Chair of American Intellectual Property Law Association’s Trade Secret Committee

On Wednesday, October 21 at 12 to 1 p.m. Pacific, Robert Milligan is presenting “Trade Secrets in Cannabis” for the California Lawyer’s Association. The program aims to help cannabusinesses and their counsel identify the potential trade secrets in this industry and learn how to protect them, including in these COVID-19 times. The speakers will also discuss some of the more
Continue Reading Robert Milligan Presenting Webinar on Trade Secrets in the Cannabis Industry

In a decision of first impression issued last week, the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee held, in Gus’s Franchisor, LLC v. Terrapin Restaurant Partners, LLC, that the COVID-19 pandemic did not excuse a terminated franchisee of Gus’s World Famous Fried Chicken (“Gus’s”) from complying with a temporary restraining order (TRO) and permanent injunction prohibiting it from using Gus’s trademarks, trade secrets and proprietary business information.
Continue Reading Don’t Play Chicken With Court Orders: COVID-19 Is No Excuse for a Terminated Franchisee to Continue Using the Franchisor’s Intellectual Property and Trade Secrets

At the end of 2019, Coty Inc. (“Coty”) expanded its brand portfolio by closing a notable $600 million deal for a majority stake in reality star Kylie Jenner’s young cosmetics company, King Kylie LLC (d/b/a Kylie Cosmetics). The purchase placed the valuation of the Kylie Cosmetics at $1.2 billion. Drama soon followed the acquisition as reports questioning Ms. Jenner’s net worth (and consequently, the value of her cosmetics empire) surfaced in May 2020, overshadowing Coty’s launch of the Kylie Skin beauty line in Europe. On June 29, 2020, Coty announced a 21% investment in KKW Beauty (Ms. Jenner’s sister’s company) for $200 million. Prompted by these deals, the manufacturer behind both Kylie Cosmetics and KKW, Seed Beauty, LLC, filed two trade secret lawsuits in Superior Court in Los Angeles, California.
Continue Reading Not so Pretty: Cosmetic Company Acquisitions Lead to Contentious Trade Secret Spat