Common use of Defense of Trade Secrets Clause in Contracts

Defense of Trade Secrets. Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 1833(b), an individual may not be held criminally or civilly liable under any federal or state trade secret law for disclosure of a trade secret (i) made in confidence to a government official, either directly or indirectly, or to an attorney, solely for the purpose of reporting or investigating a suspected violation of law, and/or (ii) in a complaint or other document filed in a lawsuit or other proceeding, if such filing is made under seal. Additionally, an individual suing an employer for retaliation based on the reporting of a suspected violation of law may disclose a trade secret to his or her attorney and use the trade secret information in the court proceeding, so long as any document containing the trade secret is filed under seal and the individual does not disclose the trade secret except pursuant to court order.