Know if Someone Else Will Own the Copyright in What Your Freelance Writer Creates; Lexology, January 27, 2022

Gordon Feinblatt LLC - Ned T. Himmelrich, Lexology; Know if Someone Else Will Own the Copyright in What Your Freelance Writer Creates

"Be sure to understand who owns the copyright when you hire someone to contribute to your project. If the person is also working for another entity, consider what rights that other principal may have. The situation may arise where a business wants to use the creative input of someone on a temporary or freelance basis, or wants to use the writer’s expertise for certain projects, but that person may be employed by someone else. The issue is that under the copyright principles of “work made for hire,” the employer, not the creator, owns anything created by an employee within the scope of his or her employment. If the creator is employed elsewhere and is providing any type of content which could be deemed within the scope of his or her employment, then the first employer, and not the second venture who is receiving the freelance help, may own the work created."

COVID-19 and Trade Secrets: Is Your Business Prepared to Protect its Trade Secrets While Your Employees Work From Home?; National Law Review, March 25, 2020

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP., National Law Review; COVID-19 and Trade Secrets: Is Your Business Prepared to Protect its Trade Secrets While Your Employees Work From Home?

"In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, many businesses (particularly those in states or cities under “stay home” orders) have implemented a work-from-home (“WFH”) directive for employees.  It is important for businesses to address the security of their trade secrets in this new environment in order to reduce the risk of misappropriation.  It is also important to reduce the risk that the trade secret status of information will be lost based on a failure to take reasonable steps to protect its secrecy.  This article addresses some steps your business can consider taking to protect trade secrets accessible by employees who are now working at home.  Even if your business had a WFH policy before the COVID-19 outbreak, it should be re-visited in light of the current circumstances flowing from a pandemic during which all or most of your workforce may be operating on a WFH basis.  For example, what was once a “no trade secrets may be taken home” policy may be impossible in the current climate.

The following are a few potential steps for consideration to protect trade secrets in the hands of employees working at home:"

How your employees can – and must – protect intellectual property; The Globe and Mail, July 18, 2018

Jeff McDowell, The Globe and Mail; How your employees can – and must – protect intellectual property

"Unfortunately, protecting IP is an area where Canada lags globally. Only 10 per cent of small and medium-sized businesses in Canada have IP, and only 9 per cent have IP strategies.

The Canadian government is helping reverse this trend with its new national IP strategy, which supports local innovators through increased resources and legislation. But it’s Canadian companies ourselves who need to see the value in protecting IP − to keep our employees motivated and validate their innovations, to protect our businesses’ hard-won knowledge and to keep strong companies growing and thriving in the Canadian economy."

Pennsylvania Federal Court Explores the Contours of the DTSA; The National Law Review, April 10, 2018

The National Law Review; Pennsylvania Federal Court Explores the Contours of the DTSA

"Recently, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania determined a former employee did not violate the Defend Trade Secrets Act (“DTSA”) where she disclosed confidential information of her former employer to her husband and her attorney."

United States: The Defend Trade Secrets Act: A Q&A With Neil Mckittrick; Mondaq, August 7, 2017

James McGrew, Mondaq; United States: The Defend Trade Secrets Act: A Q&A With Neil Mckittrick

"JM: What are some policies or best practices that employers can put in place to protect their trade secrets?

NM: An employer's primary goal should be to ensure that trade secrets remain "secret." For example, employees who have access to trade secrets should sign confidentiality agreements. Employers should also consider taking other reasonable steps to maintain the confidential nature of their trade secrets, such as limiting access to trade secrets to those employees who have a legitimate business reason to use that information, reminding departing employees of their confidentiality obligations, storing trade secrets only in password-protected locations and on password-protected devices, and implementing a strong password policy."