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Mealey's Trade Secret

November 26, 2019
Copyright, Trade Secret Claims Against Facebook, Princeton Deemed Insufficient

SAN FRANCISCO — Dismissal of state and federal trade secret law claims brought against Facebook and one of its affiliates and the trustees of Princeton University is warranted because a home design website developer has failed to sufficiently show that it took reasonable steps to protect secrecy of its data files, which were publicly available on the website, a federal judge in California ruled Nov. 21 (UAB “Planner 5D” v. Facebook Inc., et al., No. 19-3132, N.D. Calif., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 203618).
November 22, 2019
Oil Field Service Provider’s DTSA Claim Survives Defendants’ Dismissal Bid

MARSHALL, Texas — A federal judge in Texas on Nov. 20 accepted a federal magistrate judge’s report and recommendation that he deny three motions to dismiss filed by defendants in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit brought by an oil field service company that alleged that the defendants provided its trade secrets for its solid drilling waste management operation processes to a competitor in violation of the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) (Scott Environmental Services Inc. v. Newfield Exploration Co., et al., No. 19-26, E.D. Texas).
November 22, 2019
Tech Company Sued For 2nd Time Over Alleged Trade Secret Misuse

SAN DIEGO — A provider of high-speed integrated optical interconnect modules was hit with a breach of contract and trade secret misappropriation lawsuit by a former business partner on Nov. 6 in California state court, alleging that the defendant’s continued use of the plaintiff’s trade secrets in its products has resulted in further damages to the plaintiff’s business (Viasat Inc. v. Acacia Communications Inc., No. 37-2019-00060731-CB-BC-NC, Calif. Super., San Diego Co.).
November 21, 2019
Baseball Pitching Methodology Trade Secrets Survive Summary Judgment Attempt

SEATTLE — A federal judge in Washington on Nov. 19 ruled that the owner of trade secrets pertaining to a unique baseball pitching methodology has sufficiently alleged that his methodology was a protectable trade secret that he took reasonable efforts to maintain and that the operator of a competing business misappropriated those trade secrets after receiving the information while attending one of the plaintiff’s camps (Neiman Nix v. Kyle Boddy, et al., No. 18-992, W.D. Wash., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 200702).
November 20, 2019
Claims In Trade Secret Dispute Dismissed On Jurisdictional Grounds

SEATTLE — A federal judge in Washington on Nov. 15 ruled that he lacks personal jurisdiction over defendants in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit brought by the operator of a soccer academy that focuses on international study-abroad education programs between the United States and Italy because the plaintiff failed to sufficiently show that personal jurisdiction can be found under the three-part test for establishing specific jurisdiction (OSA Soccer Academy LLC v. College Life Italia, et al., No. 19-209, W.D. Wash., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 199013).
November 19, 2019
Tech Company Alleges That Former Employees Took Trade Secrets To Competitor

SAN FRANCISCO — A technology company and its subsidiary sued three former employees in California federal court on Nov. 18, alleging that the defendants misappropriated its confidential and trade secret information for several of its products and used the information after departing to work for a competitor in violation of state and federal trade secret laws (Cisco Systems Inc. v. Wilson Chung, et al., No. 19-7562, N.D. Calif.).
November 19, 2019
Plaintiff In Trade Secrets Dispute Argues Against Rule 37 Sanctions

CHICAGO — Rule 37 sanctions are not warranted in a breach of contract and trade secret misappropriation lawsuit against a former customer of a stored energy solutions provider that is alleged to have breached the terms of a contract between the parties by using the provider’s trade secrets in marketing its product line without the provider’s permission and without paying the necessary royalties for the usage, the provider argues in a Nov. 14 opposition brief filed in Illinois federal court (LiiON LLC v. Vertiv Group Corp., et al., No. 18-6133, N.D. Ill.).
November 14, 2019
Tennessee Federal Judge Lifts TRO In Copyright, Trade Secret Row

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — In a Nov. 13 decision memorializing her Nov. 7 bench ruling, a federal judge in Tennessee lifted a temporary restraining order (TRO) entered in October against various parties accused of copyright infringement and trade secret misappropriation in connection with an upcoming Christmas show (Enchant Christmas Light Maze & Market Ltd. v. Glowco LLC, et al., No. 19-966, M.D. Tenn., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 196660).
November 13, 2019
Failure To Show That Trade Secrets Were Kept Secret Leads To Dismissal Of Claims

DALLAS — A federal judge in Texas on Nov. 12 ruled that a plaintiff in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit against cruise line company Carnival Corp. and one of its executive officers failed to properly show that she took necessary steps to maintain the secrecy of trade secrets she alleged the defendants misappropriated in developing a reality television show (Sue Richter v. Carnival Corp., et al., No. 18-2172, N.D. Texas, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 195675).
November 13, 2019
Plaintiff Failed To Plead CUTSA, DTSA Claims With Particularity, Judge Rules

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Ruling that a printing and imaging provider has failed to sufficiently state with particularity what trade secrets several of its former employees and a competitor are alleged to have misappropriated, a federal judge in California on Nov. 8 dismissed the plaintiff’s claims for trade secret misappropriation in violation of state and federal law (Zoom Imaging Solutions Inc. v. Edward Roe, et al., No. 19-1544, E.D. Calif., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 195374).
November 12, 2019
Claims In Trade Secret Dispute Against Investment Adviser Overturned On Appeal

CINCINNATI — A Ohio appellate panel on Nov. 8 ruled that a state trial court erred in dismissing a trade secret misappropriation claim against an investment adviser based on the terms of a termination agreement because although the agreement released the defendant from his confidentiality and nonsolicitation obligations, the adviser had sufficiently shown that its customer contact and account information are trade secrets and may be able to show that the defendants misappropriated them (The Retirement Corporation of America, et al. v. David B. Henning, et al., No. C-180643, Ohio App., 1st Dist., Hamilton Co., 2019 Ohio App. LEXIS 4656).
November 12, 2019
Lack Of Description Of Trade Secrets Dooms Misappropriation Claim

SAN JOSE, Calif. — A federal magistrate judge in California on Nov. 7 ruled that a technology company and its acquired affiliate have failed to sufficiently describe the trade secrets they allege their former employee and an independent contractor misappropriated in violation of several agreements signed between the parties (Calsoft Labs Inc., et al. v. Venikata Panchumarthi, et al., No. 19-4398, N.D. Calif., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 194939).
November 08, 2019
Restrictive Covenant In Trade Secrets Suit Found To Be Void, Unenforceable

NEW ORLEANS — A federal judge in Louisiana on Nov. 6 granted a defendants’ motion to dismiss in a breach of contract and trade secret misappropriation lawsuit, ruling that a nonsolicitation provision contained in an employment agreement between a provider of integrated industrial safety services to the petrochemical industry and a former employee is void and cannot be reformed to comply with Louisiana law (Total Safety U.S. Inc., et al. v. Code Red Safety & Rental LLC, et al., No. 19-12953, E.D. La., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 192665).
November 08, 2019
Former Google Engineer Seeks Clarification Of Trade Secrets Obtained By Uber

SAN FRANCISCO — A former Google engineer asked a federal district court in a Nov. 6 motion to issue a bill of particulars requiring government prosecutors to “clarify the scope and specific contours” of alleged self-driving automobile technology trade secrets the engineer is alleged to have stolen and misappropriated in forming a competing company that was later purchased by Uber Technologies Inc. (United States v. Anthony Scott Levandowski, No. 19-cr-377, N.D. Calif.).
November 08, 2019
Trade Secret Suit Defendant Not Entitled To Attorney Fees After Dismissal

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A federal magistrate judge in Florida on Nov. 5 recommended that a defendant's motion for reconsideration denying his request for attorney fees in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit be granted, but only to clarify that the defendant is not entitled to such fees and not to determine whether any other relief requested should be granted (Epoxytec INTL Inc. v. Demetrios Rapanos, No. 18-62312, S.D. Fla., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 192920).
November 07, 2019
Newspaper Seeks New Trial In Remanded FOIA Suit Over USDA Retail Data

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — In a Nov. 4 reply brief, a newspaper tells a South Dakota federal court that it is entitled to a new trial in a case remanded from the U.S. Supreme Court because the high court’s ruling against it changed the rules for the application of an exemption that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) invoked when it withheld information the newspaper requested under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (Argus Leader Media v. U.S. Department of Agriculture, No. 4:11-cv-04121, D. S.D.).
November 05, 2019
Jurisdiction In Mortgage Lender’s Trade Secrets Suit Found To Be Sufficient

CLEVELAND — A federal judge in Ohio on Oct. 31 ruled that personal jurisdiction exists in a breach of contract and trade secret misappropriation lawsuit against two former employees of a retail mortgage lender under Ohio’s long-arm statute because the lender has sufficiently pleaded evidence showing that the requirements of the statute have been met and that exercising personal jurisdiction over them comports with the due process clause of the U.S. Constitution (CrossCountry Mortgage Inc. v. Joseph Messina, et al., No. 19-1021, N.D. Ohio, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 189380).
November 05, 2019
Company Must Arbitrate Claims In Trade Secret Dispute, Former Employee Argues

BOISE, Idaho — A federal district court lacks subject matter jurisdiction over claims for breach of contract and trade secret misappropriation in a lawsuit brought by a “Software-as-a-Service” provider against a former employee because those claims are subject to arbitration under the terms of certain employment agreements, the former employee argues in an Oct. 31 motion to dismiss filed in Idaho federal court (Navex Global Inc. v. Richard A. Stockwell Jr., No. 19-382, D. Idaho).
November 04, 2019
Damages Found To Be Not Recoverable For Lost Trade Secrets Under CFAA

NEW ORLEANS — A federal judge in Louisiana on Oct. 23 ruled that a defendant in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit is entitled to summary judgment dismissing injunctive relief and damages claims under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) because his former employer failed to provide sufficient details describing the nature of the alleged trade secrets the defendant allegedly deleted from his company-issued laptop when his employment was terminated (Source Production & Equipment Co. Inc., et al. v. Kevin J. Schehr, et al., No. 16-17528, E.D. La., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 185066).
November 01, 2019
Issues On Appeal In Trade Secret Suit Not Addressed, Defendants Argue

PHILADELPHIA — A NASA supplier failed to address any issues raised in an appellant brief filed by defendants in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit and, thus, vacating a federal district court’s judgment against them and remanding the action to the lower court is necessary, the defendants argue in an Oct. 29 reply brief filed in the Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals (Advanced Fluid Systems Inc. v. Kevin Huber, et al., Nos. 19-1722 and 19-1752, 3rd Cir.).
October 31, 2019
Company’s Federal Claims In Trade Secret Suit Dismissed As Time-Barred

LOS ANGELES — A federal judge in California on Oct. 28 ruled that although an internet-based social media networking and e-learning company failed to plead allegations in support of its federal claims in a trade secret misappropriation lawsuit that occurred within the two-year statute of limitations on such claims, amendment of the complaint would not be futile (Stage 32 LLC v. Joseph Tuccio, et al., No. 18-3800, C.D. Calif., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 187582).
October 31, 2019
Preliminary Injunction Elements Deemed Properly Pleaded In Trade Secrets Suit

CINCINNATI — A federal judge in Ohio on Oct. 28 ruled that a freight brokering and third-party logistics services provider’s evidence that it there is a substantial likelihood that it will succeed on the merits of its breach of contract and trade secret misappropriation claims against a former employee and direct competitors is sufficient to grant the plaintiff’s request for a preliminary injunction (Total Quality Logistics LLC v. William J. Riffe, et al., No. 19-23, S.D. Ohio).
October 29, 2019
Company: Fake Login Credentials Assist Employee In Trade Secret Theft

INDIANAPOLIS — A former employee of an office-solutions company created false login credentials and improperly accessed the company’s confidential and trade secret information after he terminated his employment from the company in violation of certain restrictive covenants, as well as state and federal trade secret laws, the company argues in an Oct. 25 complaint filed in Indiana federal court (Van Ausdall & Farrar Inc. v. Scott Schweitzer, No. 19-4354, S.D. Ind.).
October 25, 2019
Supplier To Fracking Operations Says Its Design For Potable Water Rigs Was Copied

SAN ANTONIO — A water filtering company that provides services to hydraulic fracturing companies on Oct. 4 filed a lawsuit in Texas federal court against two companies, seeking injunctive and monetary relief for trade secret misappropriation and trademark infringement (WaterFleet LLC v. TanMar Rentals LLC, et al., No. 19-1190, W.D. Texas).
October 25, 2019
Judge Denies Defendant’s Motion For New Trial In Trade Secret Theft Suit

CHICAGO — A federal judge in Illinois on Oct. 9 denied a defendant’s request for a new trial on charges that he stole trade secrets belonging to his former employer and attempted to provide those trade secrets to his former employer’s Chinese competitor in the iron foundry business (United States v. Robert O’Rourke, No. 17-cr-0495, N.D. Ill., 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 174962).