4 Key Ways to Protect Your Trade Secrets

A trade secret is a unique trait that separates your business from others in your industry. A trade secret is a product, recipe, formula, design, or other factor which helps give your business a competitive edge over businesses similar to yours. A trade secret is proprietary to your company and is protected under U.S. law. To ensure your trade secrets are safe from competitors though, it is important to follow these tips to protect your company’s valuable information.

1. Identify your trade secret: The first step in protecting your proprietary information is identifying what it is. Not all information needs to be kept secret, so you must assess what is most significant to your company and what will produce the most value for the company in the future. Another vital factor to address is how much time and money has gone into the creation of the information/design. All of these reasons will help you determine what your trade secrets are.
2. Create a trade secret policy: Once you have determined what your trade secrets are, you will want to create a written policy that requires all employees, vendors, and other entities associated with the business to keep proprietary information private. This policy will also help you in court, should a dispute ever arise regarding your trade secrets.
3. Keep trade secrets under lock and key: Whether it is paper forms or digital files, you will want to create a secure location to keep all your trade secrets, where neither physical nor virtual intruders can access them. It is important to take the time to put protective systems in place to reduce the likelihood of a third party accessing your information.
4. Hire an IP attorney: Ultimately, an intellectual property attorney will be able to provide you with the experience and knowledge you need to protect your trade secrets. An attorney can also provide you with litigation should a dispute ever arise.

Do you want to protect your trade secrets from the competition? Contact us at Daniel Law Offices, P.A. to schedule a free consultation with a member of our savvy legal team.