Range of Remedies A breach of confidence is enforced would be by way of a claim to the High Court (or Circuit Court) for damages (compensation), an account of profits and/ or an injunction. Damages are compensation for the loss that can be demonstrated in financial terms. An account of profits is the benefit of profits which can be shown to have been earned using […]
Overview Apart from patent and copyright protection, there exists common-law protection for confidential information and trade secrets. No registration is required. As with copyright, it arises by falling inside the criteria. There is no hard and fast distinction between a trade secret and confidential information. A trade secret is a subset of confidential information. Not all confidential information is protectable, but trade secrets and some […]
Overview An EU directive and the Irish regulations made under it have provided statutory-based firmer legal protection for the types of trade secrets and confidential information that are protected at common law. It is nowhere near strong or useful as patent protection. It applies to trade secrets which are more than confidential information which is also protectable. Under the preexisting case law on confidential information, […]
Non-Disclosure Agreement A confidentiality or Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) is a legal agreement that signifies a confidential relationship between two parties. In signing this agreement, the party receiving the information promises that he/she/it will not disclose defined confidential information / IP to any outside party. If the NDA is breached, the other party may seek court action and sue for monetary damages. It is a basic […]
Duty of Confidence A duty of confidence arises when confidential information comes to a person’s knowledge in circumstances where he knows or has agreed that the information is confidential and that it would be just in all the circumstances that he should be precluded from disclosing it. This may arise from a transaction, a relationship or other circumstances. The courts will apply equitable principles to […]
Protecting Undisclosed Trade Secrets An EU directive protects undisclosed know-how and business information (trade secrets) against their unlawful acquisition, use and disclosure Acquiring a trade secret is considered lawful if it is obtained by: independent discovery or creation; observation, study, disassembly or testing of a product or object that has been made available to the public or that is lawfully in the possession of the […]