Within the ranks of our litigators and corporate attorneys are a select group who specialize in protecting clients’ major assets — their employees, their customers and their confidential and proprietary information. We protect clients in three ways:
- First, we get to know our clients’ business and analyze the measures in place to protect their personnel and business from competitors. We work with clients to understand how competitive their industries are and whether the preventive measures they have in place are effective. We help clients to understand the legal meaning of “trade secret” and the prerequisites to protecting trade secrets from misappropriation by others. We also assist clients in understanding where the line between fair and unfair competition exists as the law in this area quickly evolves. We frequently counsel clients looking to recruit new employees to ensure that their recruiting efforts are undertaken with an eye toward those measures prohibited by law.
- Second, we draft restrictive covenants and other agreements for clients. In some instances, our drafting is limited to revising existing agreements to clarify and strengthen the protections clients desire. In other circumstances, we are called upon to draft non-competition, non-solicitation and non-disclosure agreements in the first instance and to assist clients in rolling out such agreements in the workplace.
- Third, we have significant experience in litigating lawsuits involving claims of unfair competition and trade secret misappropriation. Our attorneys regularly bring and defend such claims in federal and state courts, as well as in a number of arbitration forums throughout the country. Adept at gathering the necessary evidence and making the strategic decisions necessary to place the client in the best possible litigation posture, Ulmer & Berne attorneys work to secure injunctive relief and/or damages in cases where client’s business has been threatened and damaged. We work closely with our clients throughout the lawsuit, helping them to understand the legal process and work tirelessly to achieve optimal results.