Clifford Chance
Global Intellectual Property Newsletter Issue 5/14
7 May 2014
This is the third issue of the Global Intellectual Property Newsletter.
Contents:
EU Proposal for a Trade Secrets Directive
In November 2013, the European Commission proposed new rules on the protection of trade secrets intended to harmonise the currently fragmented legal provisions in the Member States.
General Comments
While parts of the EU Proposal provide for considerable improvements to the current legal situation in some of the Member States, others are less beneficial or fall behind the existent protection level.
European Comparative Analysis
Until the open issues concerning the EU Proposal have been finally re-solved, trade secrets will be subject to varying degrees of legal protection across EU Member States.
- Germany
- The Czech Republic
- Spain
- United Kingdom
- The Slovak Republic
- The Netherlands
- Italy
-
France
U.S. Trade Secrets Law
The United States has a strong history of protecting trade secrets under both state common law and the Uniform Trade Secrets Act. Criminal sanc-tions are set forth in the Economic Espionage Act of 1996.
Chinese Law on Trade Secrets
In China, the anti-unfair competition law provides the main framework for trade secret protection, along with other protections grounded in contract, company and labour laws. Recent cases show that the Chinese courts are more and more willing to take remedial action and award higher damages.
Protection of Trade Secrets at a Glance
We provide a "quick look overview" on the available remedies in the jurisdic-tions covered in this issue.
