Proposed European Rules Protect Trade Secrets – Good News

The European Commission has proposed new rules on the protection of undisclosed know-how and business information (trade secrets). These new rules aim to protect against unlawful acquisition, use and disclosure of trade secrets.

The European Commission draft directive  introduces, inter alia, a common definition of trade secrets, a framework of circumstances under which the acquisition of trade secrets is considered unlawful, as well as rules relating to obtaining redress for misappropriated trade secrets. The directive is expected to enable national courts to handle misappropriation of confidential business information more easily, remove trade secret infringing products from the market and facilitate victims receiving damages for illegal actions.