Matthew Zimmerman is a Partner in our
West Palm Beach office.
Suzanne M Aldahan is an Associate in our
Fort Lauderdale office.
In a recent case involving hackers that stole "payment card
data" from Chipotle, Judge William J. Martinez in the United
States District Court for the District of Colorado found on an
issue of first impression that payment card data was not a trade
secret and dismissed the claims brought under the Defend Trade
Secrets Act (DTSA). Bellwether Community Credit Union v. Chipotle
Mexican Grill, Inc., Case No. 1:17-cv-01102 (D. Colo. Oct. 24,
2018).
Plaintiffs Bellwether Community Credit Union and Alcoa Community
Federal Credit Union, individually and on behalf of a putative
class of similarly situated financial institutions, sued Chipotle
Mexican Grill, Inc. (Chipotle) seeking to hold Chipotle responsible
for allegedly inadequate protective measures that allowed hackers
to steal customers' payment card data. The dispute stemmed from
a 2017
