Trade Secrets & Employee Mobility

For any attorney about to rush into New York State court to seek an injunction or temporary relief with regard to a violation of a non-compete or other restrictive covenant, or with regard to misappropriation of trade secrets, think again about venue.

By Administrative Order, dated March 22, 2020, Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence Marks has decreed that until further notice, New York State courts are accepting no filings unless the filings concern an emergency matter (as defined in the Order’s Exhibit A).  Neither restrictive covenant nor trade secret matters count as ...

We previously wrote concerning a May 22, 2009 temporary restraining order granted by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio against three former employees of UBS Financial Services Inc. ("UBS"), in effect pending an arbitration hearing before the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ("FINRA"). On June 3, 2009, UBS successfully moved the District Court to expand the TRO and for a preliminary injunction on the basis of additional evidence. The expanded TRO shows that even a plaintiff who has secured temporary injunctive relief from a court need not wait for a scheduled FINRA injunctive hearing if its business interests continue to be threatened in the interim.