US lauds local trade secret protections
COOPERATION: A report by the Office of the US Trade Representative highlighted a case in Taiwan where a firm was found guilty of stealing US trade secrets for China
Staff writer, with CNA, Washington
Taiwan’s efforts to protect trade secrets have been recognized by the Office of the US Trade Representative’s (USTR) annual Special 301 Report, which was released on Friday.
In the first edition to be issued under US Trade Representative Katherine Tai (戴琪), the agency highlighted a case in Taiwan where an amended Trade Secrets Act (營業秘密法) enabled a court to find a local semiconductor company and three former employees guilty of stealing trade secrets from a US company in an attempt to help a Chinese state-owned enterprise develop a computer chip.
Executive Yuan eyes espionage curbs
STEM THE TIDE: From 2013 to October last year, 47 of the 129 breaches of the Trade Secrets Act led to Taiwanese trade secrets reaching Chinese industries, a legislator said
By Lee Hsin-fang and Jason Pan / Staff reporters
The Executive Yuan is considering measures to prevent Chinese commercial espionage and the poaching of core technologies, especially in semiconductors and information technology, sources said.
The Executive Yuan is considering amendments to the National Security Act (國家安全法) and the Trade Secrets Act (營業秘密法) to respond to increasing reports of Chinese firms recruiting Taiwanese and stealing core technologies, the sources said.
Although Taiwan prohibits firms from China from doing business or recruiting locally without prior approval, some companies conceal their Chinese ownership to recruit workers, they said.
The
Illinois Trade Secrets Act (“ITSA”), which is consistent with both other states that have adopted the Uniform Trade Secrets Act and the federal
Defend Trade Secrets Act, allows the recovery of attorneys’ fees for a party who has been forced to defend against a trade secret claim made in bad faith.
See 765 ILCS 1065/5. This fee shifting provision provides an important mechanism to obtain relief for defendants who are forced to incur significant legal fees fighting baseless claims.
In a
recent decision of the 1st Appellate District of Illinois,
Multimedia Sales & Marketing, Inc. v. Marison Marzullo, et al., 2020 IL App (1st) 191790, the court affirmed the award of attorneys’ fees incurred by defendants under the bad faith fee shifting provision of the ITSA. Plaintiff Multimedia Sales & Marketing, Inc. (“MSM”) sued one of its competitors, Radio Advertising, Inc. (“RAI”) and three of its former employees who joined RAI, alleging that the former employees mi
Trade Secrets Act to be tightened
CRITICAL TECH: Economic Democracy Union convener Lai Chung-chiang said China takes advantage of legal loopholes to control local firms and steal trade secrets
By Hsieh Chun-ling and William Hetherington / Staff reporter, with staff writer
The Executive Yuan is to draft amendments to the Trade Secrets Act (營業秘密法) to define sensitive technologies in an effort to prevent China from stealing Taiwanese trade secrets, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chao Tien-lin (趙天麟) said yesterday.
The issue was brought to Premier Su Tseng-chang’s (蘇貞昌) attention by Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chiu Tai-san (邱太三), who told Su that amendments to the act were needed to address Chinese attempts to steal critical technologies from Taiwan, Chao said.
Apple Sues Employee for Stealing Trade Secrets
Apple is suing a former employee who it claims leaked company trade secrets to a media outlet for over a year for his own personal gain.
Former advanced materials lead and product design architect Simon Lancaster is accused of abusing his position to access information outside of his job scope. He allegedly exchanged the data he stole for payment and positive media coverage of a startup business.
Court documents unsealed in federal court in California on March 11 state: Despite over a decade of employment at Apple, Lancaster abused his position and trust within the company to systematically disseminate Apple s sensitive trade secret information in an effort to obtain personal benefits.