In certain industries, it is not unheard of for business competitors to play a little cloak and dagger. Businesses may slander each other just like people.
Sometimes competitors steal each other’s customer lists or other confidential trade secrets. A competitor may try to take these secrets from another company’s employee even when the competitor is aware that the other company’s employee has a non-compete agreement. This act of knowingly hiring an employee with a non-compete agreement is known as a tortious interference with a contractual relationship.
Business owners with information to protect should take affirmative steps to ensure their private, valuable information remains a confidential trade secret. Businesses should enter into certain agreements with their employees, so the employees understand their duty to keep certain valuable information confidential.
Business owners should contact an experienced business attorney to make sure they have taken proper steps to maintain the value of their secrets. If a business owner believes he or she may have already suffered foul play, he or she should contact a business attorney to determine if there are grounds for seeking a court order to stop the unlawful use of valuable secrets.
Matt Miller-Novak, Esq. Godbey and Associates
Source: The Gavel