Tag: Defend Trade Secrets Act

The Fifth Circuit Issues Its First Decision on the Defend Trade Secrets Act

by Leiza Dolghih, posted in Intellectual Property Disputes, Temporary Injunctions, Texas Business Law, Texas Employment Law, Texas Legal News, Trade Secrets

trade secrets label on folder

Two and a half years after the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) became effective, the Fifth Circuit has issued its first opinion addressing the statute.  Earlier this month, the Court ruled that: (1) a party must “prevail” before it can recover any attorney’s fees under the DTSA and (2) a plaintiff’s dismissal of its claims without prejudice does not confer the “prevailing party” status on defendants. 

Dunster Live, LLC v. Lonestar Logos Management Company, LLC involved a situation where the plaintiff, Dunster, having lost an injunction hearing in a trade secrets case in federal court, wanted to dismiss the case without prejudice and refile it in a state court sans the DTSA claim.  Under 41(a)(2) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, if a defendant has already answered the lawsuit or filed a motion for summary judgment, plaintiff is required to file a motion with the court asking for a permission to dismiss its claims without prejudice. The district court granted Dunster’s motion to dismiss, and the plaintiff proceeded to file an almost identical trade secrets lawsuit but without the DTSA claim in a state court.

After the dismissal, Lonestar sought to recover its attorney’s fees of over $600,000 on the basis that Dunster had brought its federal lawsuit in “bad faith.” The district court denied Lonestar’s request for attorney’s fees holding that a dismissal without prejudice of Dunster’s claims did not make Lonestar a “prevailing party” under the DTSA.

Lonestar furter argued that Dunster sought to evade paying attorneys fees by strategically seeking a dismissal without prejudice once it realized that its lawsuit was doomed, and that the DTSA’s “bad faith” provision supported a fee award even when a defendant had not officially prevailed.  The DTSA’s provision upon which Lonestar relied states the following:

[i]f a claim of the misappropriation is made in bad faith, which may be established by circumstantial evidence, a motion to terminate an injunction is made or opposed in bad faith, or the trade secret was willfully and maliciously misappropriated, [a court may] award reasonable attorney’s fees to the prevailing party.  18 U.S.C. 1836(b)(3)(D).

The district court rejected this argument as well denying Lonestar’s request for attorney’s fees.

The Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court’s ruling finding that a dismissal without prejudice under the DTSA did not confer the status of a “prevailing party” on Lonestar, similar to other federal statutes that allow prevailing parties to recover attorney’s fees, such as the Equal Access to Justice Act, Patent Act, Civil Rights Act, or Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

The Court also rejected Lonestar’s argument that the DTSA only required a showing of “bad faith” by a plaintiff in filing a lawsuit and not a showing that a defendant was a “prevailing party.”  It explained that “[a]llowing bad faith alone to support a fee award would improperly read the concluding language of Section 1836(b)(3)(D) – ‘the prevailing party’ – out of the statute.”  Thus, a party seeking attorney’s fees under the DTSA must establish both: (1) that it is a prevailing party and (2) one of the three qualifying scenarios described in 1836(b)(3)(D).

TAKEAWAY:  With the DTSA becoming effective on May 11, 2016, plaintiffs in Texas now have a choice of whether to seek redress for trade secrets misappropriation in state courts or federal courts.  Dunster makes it clear that as long as plaintiff has brought its DTSA claim in good faith in federal court, it may have a chance to change the strategy down the road and explore its claims in state court without facing the penalty of having to pay defendant’s attorneys fees as the result of dismissing its federal lawsuit without prejudice.

Leiza Dolghih is a partner at Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP in Dallas, Texas and a Co-Chair of the firm’s Trade Secrets and Non-Compete Disputes national practice.  Her practice includes commercial, intellectual property and employment litigation.  You can contact her directly at Leiza.Dolghih@LewisBrisbois.com or (214) 722-7108.. 

Texas Amends Its Trade Secrets Statute Effective September

by Leiza Dolghih, posted in Texas Business Law, Texas Employment Law, Texas Legal News, Trade Secrets

good-wifeTexas Governor recently signed House Bill 1995, which amends Texas Uniform Trade Secrets Act (“TUTSA”) and aligns is with the Defend Trade Secrets Act (“DTSA”).

HB 1995 will go into effect on September 1, 2017 and will eliminate the difference between the TUTSA’s and DTSA’s definitions of “trade secrets,” removing an incentive to forum shop. Additionally, the statute will emphasize that the owner must take reasonable “measures,” and not just “efforts,” to protect its trade secrets. HB 1995 also introduces the following new definitions:

• “Owner” means, with respect to a trade secret, the person or entity in whom or in which rightful, legal, or equitable title to, or the right to enforce rights in, the trade secret is reposed.

• “Willful and malicious misappropriation,” means intentional misappropriation resulting from the conscious disregard of the rights of the owner of the trade secret.

• “Clear and convincing evidence” required to establish willful and malicious misappropriation is defined as the “measure or degree of proof that will produce in the mind of the trier of fact a firm belief or conviction as to the truth of the allegations sought to be established.”

Additionally, come September, Texas courts will have to apply a balancing test first articulated in  In re M-I, L.L.C., 505 S.W.3d 569 (Tex. 2016) when determining whether a party involved in a trade secrets lawsuit can be denied access to documents or testimony about its competitor’s trade secrets.  TUTSA codified this test as follows:

a presumption exists that a party is allowed to participate and assist counsel in the presentation of the party’s case. At any stage of the action, the court may exclude a party and the party’s representative or limit a party’s access to the alleged trade secret of another party if other countervailing interests overcome the presumption. In making this determination, the court must conduct a balancing test that considers:

•  the value of an owner’s alleged trade secret;
• the degree of competitive harm an owner would suffer from the dissemination of the owner’s alleged trade secret to the other party;
• whether the owner is alleging that the other party is already in possession of the alleged trade secret;
• whether a party’s representative acts as a competitive decision maker;
• the degree to which a party’s defense would be impaired by limiting that party’s access to the alleged trade secret;
• whether a party or a party’s representative possesses specialized expertise that would not be available to a party’s outside expert; and
• the stage of the action.

Bottom Line: In light of these new amendments, companies involved in trade secrets disputes in Texas will have to strategize early on – even pre-litigation – not only about proving their claims and defenses but also about protecting their trade secrets during the lawsuit and gathering evidence necessary to obtain attorney’s fees related to the trade secrets misappropriation claim.

Leiza litigates non-compete and trade secrets lawsuits in a variety of industries in federal and state courts. If you are a party to a dispute involving a noncompete agreement or misappropriation of trade secrets, contact Leiza at Leiza.Dolghih@lewisbrisbois.com or (214) 722-7108. 

 

Trade Secrets Litigation is About to Change with the Passage of the Federal Defend Trade Secrets Act

by Leiza Dolghih, posted in Confidentiality Agreements in Texas, Law, Texas Business Law, Texas Legal News, Trade Secrets

trade secrets label on folder

The federal Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA), that has been subject of rigorous debate over the past few years, is just days away from becoming the law of the land. 

On April 4, 2016, the Senate passed the DTSA bill with a vote of 87-0 (S-1890). Yesterday, the House passed the bill by a vote of 410-2. The bill will now move to the White House, but given that the Obama Administration has already voiced strong support in its favor, it is expected that President Obama will sign the bill into law in the next several days. 

The DTSA amends the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 to create a federal civil remedy for stealing trade secrets.  Currently, trade secrets are governed by a patchwork of 50 state trade secrets statutes.  The DTSA will provide an additional uniform federal statute that trade secrets owners may use to protect themselves and fill the perceived gaps in the state statutes. 

One of the most salient features of the DTSA that has received a lot of attention is a provision that allows a plaintiff in a trade secrets lawsuit to obtain an ex parte seizure order “only in extraordinary circumstances” of the “property necessary to prevent the propagation or dissemination of the trade secret that is the subject of the action.”  I foresee many litigants in the future arguing over what constitutes “extraordinary circumstances” that justify seizure of somebody’s phone, computer, or other property, in order to prevent further dissemination of trade secrets. 

Stay tuned for a detailed analysis of the statute once it becomes the law…

Leiza litigates non-compete and trade secrets lawsuits on behalf of COMPANIES and EMPLOYEES in a variety of industries, and has advised hundreds of clients regarding non-compete and trade secret issue. If you need assistance with a non-compete or a trade secret misappropriation situation, contact Leiza for a confidential consultation at Leiza.Dolghih@lewisbrisbois.com or (214) 722-7108.