Continuing Legal Education (CLE)
In This Section
AIPLA Career & Practice Management Discussion Series - Protecting Trade Secrets in an Anti-Noncompete Era
March 2, 2021 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM
Member-benefit exclusive! A presentation from the Career & Practice Management Discussion Series.. No CLE credit available.
Noncompetition agreements have historically offered powerful protection against misappropriation of trade secrets. While a departing employee may have legal and contractual obligations to refrain from disclosing trade secrets to a subsequent competing employer, an enforceable noncompete means that the employer need not blindly trust that its former employee will remain faithful to these obligations. Removing the employee from the competitor effectively removes the threat. But noncompetes have fallen out of favor with many judges, state legislators, and even our new President, all of whom decry these agreements as being unfair to workers and improperly restrictive of their mobility in the labor market. Many states have enacted statutes limiting or prohibiting the enforcement of noncompetes, and the Biden Administration has forewarned of his intention to abolish them. In light of these challenges, noncompetes have become a less reliable tool, and businesses need to find alternative means to protect and secure their trade secrets. In this seminar, Tom McNulty, an intellectual property attorney at Lando & Anastasi, and Max Perlman an employment and trade secret litigator at Hirsch Roberts Weinstein LLP, will address the challenges and potential solutions through a discussion of the following topics:
- A Powerful Tool: Protecting Trade Secrets with Noncompetes
- Using noncompetes to protect trade secrets
- Unique protection offered by noncompetes
- Challenges to the Enforceability (and Existence, Even) of Noncompetes
- Recent court decisions
- State legislative efforts
- President Biden’s warnings
- Optimizing the Prospects for Enforcement of Noncompetes
- Reasonableness in scope and target
- Reasonableness in enforcement efforts
- Statutory compliance / adherence to presumptions
- Plan B: Protecting Trade Secrets in the Absence of Noncompetes
- Other restrictive covenants
- DTSA / UTSA / Inevitable disclosure
- Practical / technological solutions
- Special considerations for protecting trade secrets in a remote working environment
System requirements:
Webinar access is compatible with any Windows 7 or later computer, Android OS devices, or Apple/iOS devices. Check system compatibility here.
Accessibility for hearing impaired:
AIPLA’s webinars are available and accessible to individuals who are hearing impaired. If anyone at your location would like to know more about accommodations, please contact cle@aipla.org. We ask that you let us know at least 7 business days out from the webinar, to ensure that we can identify and deploy the solution that best fits our registrants needs.
Disclaimer: AIPLA is a nonprofit national bar association. The sole purpose of this CLE program is to provide educational and informational content. AIPLA does not provide legal services or advice. The opinions, views and other statements expressed by contributors to this CLE program are solely those of the contributors. These opinions, views and statements of the contributors do not necessarily represent those of AIPLA and should not be construed as such.
News
-
Updates on the Forthcoming USPTO Patent Fees
January 17, 2025
On November 20, 2024, the USPTO published its final rule, “Setting and Adjusting Patent Fees During Fiscal Year 2025,” which will take effect on Sunday, January 19, 2025. Since the April 3, 2024, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to establish or increase certain patent fees, AIPLA has actively engaged with its members by gathering feedback, submitting written comments, meeting with USPTO officials, and hosting informational webinars to keep members informed of the changes. As the implementation date approaches, members have raised additional questions, prompting AIPLA to seek clarification from the USPTO. Read below the results of our outreach with the Office. -
AIPLA Comments to Trump Transition Team on IP Priorities
January 6, 2025
Arlington, VA. December 23, 2024 – The American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) submitted a letter of recommendation on IP priorities for the Trump Transition Team emphasizing the critical role of IP in driving innovation and economic growth. -
AIPLA Files Amicus Brief in EcoFactor, Inc. v. Google LLC
December 2, 2024
Arlington, VA. November 26, 2024 – The American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) filed an amicus brief in EcoFactor, Inc. v. Google LLC, in support of neither party. -
Setting and Adjusting Patent & Trademark Fees During Fiscal Year 2025 for the USPTO
November 21, 2024
On November 18, 2024, the US Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) announced a final rule via the Federal Register adjusting the trademark fees. A subsequent notice regarding patent fees was issued in the Federal Register on November 20, 2024. -
AIPLA Files Amicus Brief to the Enlarged Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office
November 21, 2024
Arlington, VA. November 14, 2024 – The American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) filed an amicus brief to the Enlarged Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office (EPO), offering its perspective on referral G1/24 about claim interpretation.