Protection of Confidential Iformation

October 14, 2008
Intellectual Property News and Interesting Facts

A company can protect its confidential information through non-disclosure contracts with its employees.

The law of protection of confidential information effectively allows a perpetual monopoly in secret information – it does not expire as would a patent. The lack of formal protection, however, means that a third party is not prevented from independently duplicating and using the secret information once it is discovered.

The sanctioned protection of such type of information from public disclosure is viewed as an important legal aspect by which a society protects its overall economic vitality. A company typically invests money, time and energy into generating information regarding refinements of processes and operations.

If competitors had access to the same knowledge, the first company’s ability to survive or maintain its market dominance or market position and market share would be impaired.