IPaint

Going back to College for a Trade Secrets Graduate Degree
Steve McDaniel, Technology Litigators June 6, 2013
Don't take IP from the University, give it to them
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The Greatest Trade Secret Heist the World Has Ever Known?
Steve McDaniel, Technology Litigators April 1, 2013
So, can a trade secret thief benefit from his heist and walk away totally unscathed? Oh yeah. Can the scoundrel make a ton of money from it right under the nose of the rightful owner? You bet. Does society sometimes even reward the rogue for his stic…
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Non-Compete Agreements – One Size Does Not Fit All
Beth McDaniel & u2028Steve McDaniel, JD, PhD, Technology Litigators March 1, 2013
Non-competition. The very term seems un-American. In this country, we are all about competition, free, unfettered, plain old American competition. Right? Right. That pretty much sums up the same attitude that the America…
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How to Make a Buck or Two from Licensing Your Trade Secrets
by Jonathan D. Hurt and Steve McDaniel, Technology Litigators February 7, 2013
All right, you’ve spent the time and money to create and guard your trade secrets from misappropriation. Wonderful! But your business model is at least partly based on others paying you to use your trade secrets. Perhaps you h…
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How Much Is That Trade Secret Worth?
Steve McDaniel, Technology Litigators January 15, 2013
The law imposes a “value” standard on trade secrets. A trade secret is valuable (in one rendition of such laws) and thus protectable if it gives its owner “an opportunity to obtain an advantage over competitors who do not know…
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Better Living Through Chemistry (Chemical Trade Secrets, That Is)
Steve McDaniel, Technology Litigators December 20, 2012
In this space, we have spent considerable time discussing the laws of trade secrecy. That’s what us lawyers do – geek out on the law. But, if you look up under my crisp Armani suit (yeah, like I have one!), what you will find…
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Engaging in unprotected business
Beth McDaniel, Technology Litigators December 4, 2012
In this article, we will explore the situation where your trade secrets have been absconded in the hands of a mid-level employee, only to discover that you have failed to contractually protect yourself. No Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) exists to set out the limitations on disclosure of your trade secrets and remedies for misappropriation.
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When There Is No Way To Stop Your Trade Secrets From . . . Literally . . . Walking Out The Door
Steve McDaniel, JD, PhD, Technology Litigators October 10, 2012
One of your highest level managers, one with complete access to all your inside information and trade secrets, quits and immediately heads over to your direct competitor. He does not have a covenant-not-to-compete, and maybe not even a binding non-di…
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Professional Strength Trade Secret Audits – Part I
Steve McDaniel, JD, PhD; Jon Hurt, PhD; & Beth McDaniel, JD, Technology Litigators July 24, 2012
Regardless of whether you have conducted a DIY trade secret audit (good idea) or not (not good - asking for trouble), you should consider finalizing your trade secret protection with a professional third party audit. Why? Because having your security…
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DIY Audits of Coatings Companies Trade Secrets
Steve McDaniel, JD PhD, Technology Litigators, Contributing Writer June 5, 2012
The DIY approach looms large in certain sectors of our industry, with do-it-yourselfers painting everything from model cars to kitchens to yachts. As discussed in previous iPaint columns, trade secrets as a means to gain competitive edges also have a…
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The Trade Secret Dance: Lessons From The Litigation Trenches
Steve McDaniel, JD, PhD, Technology Litigators & Paul Stanfield, JD, Stanfield Hiserodt, PLLC May 15, 2012
Queen’s Counsel: You have testified to this Court that you personally handed any bloke who walked into my client’s front office the computer code that contains its trade secrets, no questions asked. Is that right, Mr. Smythe? Witness: Wh…
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Patent Pendency: A Great Reason to Cherish Your Trade Secrets
Steve McDaniel, JD, PhD; and Jon Hurt, PhD, Technology Litigators April 19, 2012
So, rather than protecting your product and your market share using trade secrets, you opt to patent your new and exciting additive, coating formulation, paint container, paint sprayer, etc., in the United States. Let’s say the U.S. is a huge m…
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Trade Secrets and Employees: Are you covering your Ass(ets)?
Beth McDaniel, JD & Steve McDaniel, PhD, JD, Contributing Writers March 19, 2012
Secret formulas, manufacturing processes, financial information, future product plans, customer lists…what are your trade secrets and what are you doing to protect them from inadvertent or intentional misuse or misappropriation by your ow…
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Would You Even Know A Trade Secret If It Jumped Up and Bit You Somewhere?
Steve McDaniel, PhD, JD, Contributing Editor February 15, 2012
OK. We all know what trade secrets are, right? The formula for Coca Cola is supposedly in a heavily guarded vault in Atlanta (yeah, right). We can all probably agree that if someone swipes the Coke formula, they are guilty of trade secret theft (amon…
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If We Told You That, We’d Have To... You Know...
Steve McDaniel, PhD, JD, Technology Litigators, Contributing Editor January 24, 2012
Protecting novel compositions and processes.
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