Michigan

Protecting Your Trade Secrets in a Michigan Court

For many "regular" businesses, a growing percentage of their value is made up of intangible assets like intellectual property and trade secrets. As these items grow in value, ensuring protection of your business's trade secrets is of the utmost importance to its success and future growth.

Trade secrets include such items as research and development data, customer lists and related information, financial data, and strategic plans and corporate information. It comes as a surprise to many business owners that one of the biggest threats to a business's trade secrets is its current and former employees. But, this makes sense when one considers that today's employees are more like free agents than long-term "franchise players."

It is imperative that businesses take the appropriate steps to guard and protect their trade secrets and confidential business information. The loss or theft of this information can be devastating to a business, especially if it is used by former employees to unfairly compete by undercutting their former employer's market position or to solicit their former employee's customers or clients.

Michigan law provides protection to businesses who are the victims of misappropriation of their trade secrets and confidential business information. If you are faced with the loss or theft of important business information, you should consult with an experienced Michigan trade secrets lawyer to assist you in enforcing your rights.

Full post as published by Michigan Business Lawyer Blog on March 28, 2008 (boomark / email).