In Lawson v. Spirit AeroSystems, Inc., the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit upheld the forfeiture of certain stock awards for violating a covenant not to compete. Like the Seventh Circuit in LKQ Corp. v. Rutledge(which applied Delaware law), the Tenth Circuit concluded that, under Kansas law, the remedy of forfeiting
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Tenth Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Trade Secret Claims for Lack of Particularity and Secrecy
On April 22, 2025, the Tenth Circuit affirmed summary judgment in favor of a sales manager and his new employer on claims under the Defend Trade Secrets Act (“DTSA”), the Oklahoma Uniform Trade Secrets Act (“OUTSA”), and common law claims for misappropriation of confidential business information and civil conspiracy, which were brought by his former…
Georgia Federal Court Denies TRO and Motion to Dismiss in Trade Secrets Case
On March 27, 2025, in Stimlabs LLC v. Griffiths, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia ordered a former executive, Sarah Griffiths, to face claims related to her alleged theft of Stimlab’s trade secrets under the Defend Trade Secrets Act (“DTSA”) and the Georgia Trade Secrets Act (“GTSA”) after denying her application…
Eleventh Circuit Revives Trade Secret Misappropriation Claim in Long-Running Litigation
On April 4, 2025, the Eleventh Circuit reversed the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama’s ruling dismissing Alabama Aircraft Industries’ (“AAI”) trade secret misappropriation claim against Boeing, thereby allowing AAI to pursue unjust enrichment damages in addition to amounts previously recovered on its breach of contract claim. See Alabama Aircraft Industries…
Court Rejects DTSA Claim Over Inadequate Efforts to Protect Alleged Trade Secrets
On March 13, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York dismissed a trade secret misappropriation claim under the Defend Trade Secrets Act (“DTSA”), finding that the employer failed to plead it had taken reasonable measures to maintain the secrecy of its alleged trade secrets.
In Negative, Inc. v. McNamara, 2025…
District Court Dismisses Trade Secrets Claim Lacking Explicit Expectation of Privacy
Seventh Circuit Decision Highlights Distinction Between Traditional Non-Compete and Forfeiture-for-Competition
A recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit allowed an employer to enforce a “forfeiture-for-competition” against a former plant manager. The Court explained that, under Delaware law, forfeiture-for competition is not subject to the same reasonableness standard as a traditional non-compete clause. The case is LKQ Corporation v. Robert Rutledge…
Jury Awards $452 Million After Trade Secrets Trial
On December 3, 2024, a U.S District Court for the District of Massachusetts jury awarded Plaintiff Insulet Corporation $452 million in compensatory and punitive damages after finding Defendants willfully misappropriated Insulet’s trade secrets. Insulet Corp. v. EOFlow Co. Ltd., et al., Case No. 1:23-cv-11780 (D. Mass.)
Insulet is a manufacturer of tubeless insulin pump patches…
EV Trade Secrets Litigation Series: Tesla and Rivian Resolve High-Stakes Legal Clash Over IP
After getting the green light to proceed to a trial in March of 2025, Tesla and Rivian have reportedly reached an agreement to settle their trade secret dispute out of court. Tesla and Rivian officially filed for dismissals in mid-December and the Court subsequently close the case. This will mark the end of one of…
Virginia Court of Appeals Vitiates Multi-Billion Dollar Trade Secrets Verdict
Finding errors in the lower court’s jury instructions and evidentiary rulings, the Virginia’s Court of Appeals struck down a $2 billion trade secrets award, the largest trade secrets verdict in the state’s history. Despite striking the damages award, the court upheld the lower court’s determination that Appian Corp (Appian) had properly defined its trade secrets,…