Tuesday, August 20, 2013

New Texas Trade Secrets Act

Effective September 1, 2013 the Texas Uniform Trade Secrets Act becomes law.  In the past, trade secret law in Texas has been largely governed by a large and sometimes confusing body of case law.  Having a statute to rely upon should make it easier for companies to enforce their rights when their trade secrets are misappropriated and give clearer guidance as to what is considered a violation.

Highlights of the new bill are:


  • It may now be easier for Texas companies to recover damages for trade secret theft.
  • Customer data is included as the type of information that can be a protected trade secret, making it easier to obtain court relief against departing employees and unscrupulous competitors that misappropriate this data.
  • A Company must use reasonable efforts to keep the information secret for it to be a trade secret entitled to protection.
  • Injunctive relief, monetary damages, attorney fees and punitive damages may be awarded against the wrongdoers.