Protecting Your Proprietary Information: Lessons From SHAC Solutions Inc v Guenther

Introduction

Intellectual Property (IP) is often one of a company's most valuable assets, yet it is often misunderstood as being limited to patents and trademarks. Many of the most critical assets of a company exist in less formal but equally important forms: confidential information, trade secrets, customer relationships and institutional know-how (see our previous publication on this topic, X.AI Corp. v. OpenAI—Why Every Business (and Start-Up) Needs an Employee Governance Policy for Managing Confidential Business Information and IP Risk).

The Alberta Court of King's Bench decision SHAC Solutions Inc v Guenther, 2024 ABKB 145, provides an instructive example of how courts recognize and protect these forms of IP, and why comprehensive IP protections are essential for all businesses.