Trade Secret Law: Cases and Materials

Elizabeth A. Rowe, University of Virginia School of Law

Sharon K. Sandeen, Mitchell Hamline School of Law

CasebookPlus™

This title is available in our CasebookPlus format. CasebookPlus provides support beyond your classroom lectures and materials by offering additional digital resources to you and your students. Anchored by faculty-authored formative self-assessments keyed to our most popular casebooks, CasebookPlus allows students to test their understanding of core concepts as they are learning them in class – on their own, outside of the classroom, with no extra work on your part. CasebookPlus combines three important elements:

• A new print or digital casebook
• Access to a downloadable eBook with the ability to highlight and add notes
• 12-month access to a digital Learning Library complete with:

Multiple-choice self-assessment questions, including:

• Chapter questions keyed to the casebook
• Black Letter Law questions (available in select subjects)
• Subject area review questions for end of semester use

Essay and short answer questions with sample answers and expert commentary, in 1L and select upper-level subjects

Leading digital study aids, an outline starter, and audio lectures in select subjects

Students can still utilize CasebookPlus digital resources if they’ve purchased a used book or are renting their text by purchasing the Learning Library at westacademic.com.

With CasebookPlus, you can customize your students’ learning experience and monitor their performance. The quiz editor allows you to create your own custom quiz set, suppress specific quiz questions or quiz sets, and time-release quiz questions. Additionally, the flexible, customized reporting capability helps you evaluate your students’ understanding of the material and can also help your school demonstrate compliance with the new ABA Assessment and Learning Outcomes standards.

Table of Contents

Teacher’s Manual – 2nd Edition

Here are brief explanations of the changes made to each chapter (some chapters are unchanged):

Chapter 1: We deleted an introductory case and the two common law cases and replaced them with a decision on a request for preliminary injunction that was rendered in the recent case of Waymo v. Uber. Not only do we think this case will resonate with students given the recognizable parties and the cool technology (self-driving cars), it has everything that a trade secret professor could want for an introductory case. First, it provides a detailed explanation of the elements of a trade secret claim, discussing both the DTSA and California’s version of the UTSA. Next, it details the standards for the grant of a preliminary injunction. It also explains: how Fifth Amendment issues and stays pending arbitration can arise in trade secret cases; the difference between trade secrets and other confidential business information; and the role of non-disclosure agreements in trade secret litigation.

Chapter 3: [Argus Leader added]

Chapter 4: The economic value requirement of the UTSA/DTSA is the most undertheorized requirement of the three prongs of trade secrecy, so we are always on the look-out for cases that explain the requirement in detail. We kept the classic Electro Craft case and added a new case which details the economic value analysis and required proof in a case involving a combination trade secret. We also added a DTSA case concerning how the economic value requirement must be pleaded in federal courts. This provides an opportunity to re-teach Iqbal and Twombly. One case was deleted to keep the length of the chapter reasonable.

Chapter 6: This chapter concerning the acquisition by improper means prong of trade secret misappropriation was not changed significantly, principally because these types of claims are not brought much and, thus, the jurisprudence is relatively stagnant. The Christopher case remains the most interesting reported case on the reach of the definition of “improper means” but it has been cited far more by legal commentators than courts (only 55 times since 1970). A reference to Professor Sandeen’s article on the history of the wrongful acquisition tort has been added as it is one of the few articles to explain how that prong of trade secret misappropriation developed. As she points out, a critical issue in wrongful acquisition cases is whether there can be a successful claim for monetary damages without proof of subsequent disclosure or use.

Chapter 7: The cases in this chapter have not been changed, but more explanatory material has been added, particularly with respect to the definitions of “disclosure” and “use” under the UTSA and DTSA. As noted in Chapter 6, the wrongful disclosure or use of trade secrets is the traditional definition of misappropriation, with the “wrongful acquisition” tort being added later. However, neither the UTSA nor the DTSA define those terms and most courts rely upon the definitions that are set forth in the Restatement (Third) of Unfair Competition. As the added materials now explain, the theory of disclosure or use that a plaintiff alleges (and that is accepted by the court) will determine the harm suffered and ultimately the amount (if any) of allowable damages.

Chapter 9: A significant change was made to this chapter to add a new section and a new case on the topic of Motions to Dismiss in trade secret litigation. Due to the enactment of the DTSA and the pleading standards of federal courts, it has become fairly common practice for defendants to challenge the sufficiency of pleadings in trade secret cases, most often challenging the sufficiency of the allegations related to the existence of trade secrets. Even if the motion is not granted, or it is granted with leave to amend, bringing a Motion to Dismiss under FRCP Rule 12(b)(6) for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted is an important strategy for defendants because it: (1) stalls commencement of discovery; (2) requires the plaintiff to provide further explanations concerning that nature and scope of their alleged trade secrets; and (3) highlights a critical issue for the court: namely, whether trade secrets actually exist.

Learn more about this series.