Defend Trade Secrets Act: Handbook Statements Updated

Author: Melissa Gonzalez Boyce, XpertHR Legal Editor

The new Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) standardizes and strengthens employers' legal remedies and protections by allowing an employer to file a private cause of action in federal court for trade secret misappropriation in addition to broadening the definition of what is considered trade. The DTSA also provides immunity to whistleblowers who reveal a business's trade secrets to the government as part of any violations they report and requires an employer to advise employees of this immunity in trade secret confidentiality contracts or agreements.

As a result of this development, the Confidential Company Information Handbook Statement has been updated. In addition, the Reporting and Anti-Retaliation Policy Handbook Statement has been significantly revised to more effectively convey a corporate culture of ethics and compliance and to encourage employees to come forward with concerns about illegal or unethical conduct. This policy has also been revised to include provisions referencing protections for whistleblowers under the DTSA.