misappropriation of trade secrets claim in North Carolina

2020Finally, Scott Bader argues that SciGrip’s failure to request the trial court to consider a misappropriation of trade secrets claim on any theory other than as a violation of the North Carolina Trade Secrets Protection Act precludes it from asserting such a claim under the law of any other jurisdiction, citing Leonard v. Johns-Manville Sales Corp., 309 N.C. 91, 95 , 305 S.E.2d 528, 531 (1983) (stating that “[t]he party seeking to have the law of a foreign jurisdiction apply has the burden of bringing such law to the attention of the court”).

2020Finally, Scott Bader argues that SciGrip’s failure to request the trial court to consider a misappropriation of trade secrets claim on any theory other than as a violation of the North Carolina Trade Secrets Protection Act precludes it from asserting such a claim under the law of any other jurisdiction, citing Leonard v. Johns-Manville Sales Corp., 309 N.C. 91, 95 , 305 S.E.2d 528, 531 (1983) (stating that “[t]he party seeking to have the law of a foreign jurisdiction apply has the burden of bringing such law to the attention of the court”).

2025As earlier stated, in its Complaint, Exencial identifies “its Confidential Information, manner of doing business with customers, Exencial’s members’ contact information, and other non-public information” as potential trade secrets. 66 Exencial’s Confidential Information, as defined in the Employment Agreement, “may include, among other things, customer lists, sales information, price lists, operational, sales, promotional, marketing, and administrative methods, procedures and techniques.” 67 This broad, all-encompassing definition falls far short of “enabl[ing] a defendant to delineate that wh

2019App. 462 , 470 n.3, 579 S.E.2d 449, 454 (2003). 14 In DSM Dyneema, this Court analyzed a misappropriation of trade secrets claim where the defendant argued for dismissal on the theory that the plaintiff’s claim was based on the inevitable disclosure doctrine.

2017App. 559, 570 , 754 S.E.2d 852, 860 (2014) (affirming “the trial court’s grant of a preliminary injunction” for a misappropriation of trade secrets claim); Wade S. Dunbar Ins.

2015Compare Barr-Mullin, Inc. v. Browning, 108 N.C.App. 590 , 596, 424 S.E.2d 226 , 230 (1993) (analyzing the plaintiff's likelihood of success on its misappropriation of trade secrets by determining whether the plaintiff established a prima facie case of misappropriation by showing that: "(1) [the] defendant knows or should have known of the trade secret; and (2) [the] defendant has had a specific opportunity to acquire the trade secret"), and VisionAIR, Inc. v. James, 167 N.C.App. 504 , 510-11, 606 S.E.2d 359 , 364 (2004) (clarifying that "[t]o plead misappropriation of trade secrets, a plaintif

2025Planning Inc., 166 N.C.

2019Krawiec, 370 N.C. at 611 , 811 S.E.2d at 549 (“[P]laintiffs’ failure to describe a specific idea, concept, strategy, or tactic with respect to their marketing plan or to provide any detail about their dance productions renders their claim too general for this Court to determine—even taking plaintiffs’ factual allegations as true—whether there is a ‘formula, pattern, program, device, compilation of information, method, technique, or process’ at issue that ‘[d]erives independent actual or potential commercial value from not being generally known or readily ascertainable through independent devel

2019Krawiec, 370 N.C. at 611 , 811 S.E.2d at 549 (“[P]laintiffs’ failure to describe a specific idea, concept, strategy, or tactic with respect to their marketing plan or to provide any detail about their dance productions renders their claim too general for this Court to determine—even taking plaintiffs’ factual allegations as true—whether there is a ‘formula, pattern, program, device, compilation of information, method, technique, or process’ at issue that ‘[d]erives independent actual or potential commercial value from not being generally known or readily ascertainable through independent devel

2018This is not a difficult standard for plaintiffs to meet: “The complaint is construed liberally,” U.S. Bank Nat’l Ass’n v. Pinkney, 369 N.C. 723, 726 , 800 S.E.2d 412 , 415 (2017), “view[ing] the allegations as true and . . . in the light most favorable to the non-moving party,” id. at 726, 800 S.E.2d at 415 (alterations in original) (quoting Kirby v. NC DOT, 368 N.C. 847, 852 , 786 S.E.2d 919, 923 (2016)), and the claim is not dismissed “unless it appears beyond doubt that [the] plaintiff could prove no set of facts in support of his claim which 1Even if the misappropriation of trade secrets c

2018Irving, Ltd., 43 F. Supp. 3d 635, 641 (E.D.N.C. 2014) (concluding that plaintiffs could not bring a claim under North Carolina’s TSPA because defendants’ alleged misappropriation occurred in Canada); 3A Composites USA, Inc. v. United Indus., Inc., No. 5:14-CV-5147, 2015 U.S. Dist.

2015Compare Barr-Mullin, Inc. v. Browning, 108 N.C.App. 590 , 596, 424 S.E.2d 226 , 230 (1993) (analyzing the plaintiff's likelihood of success on its misappropriation of trade secrets by determining whether the plaintiff established a prima facie case of misappropriation by showing that: "(1) [the] defendant knows or should have known of the trade secret; and (2) [the] defendant has had a specific opportunity to acquire the trade secret"), and VisionAIR, Inc. v. James, 167 N.C.App. 504 , 510-11, 606 S.E.2d 359 , 364 (2004) (clarifying that "[t]o plead misappropriation of trade secrets, a plaintif

2015Compare Barr-Mullin, Inc. v. Browning, 108 N.C.App. 590 , 596, 424 S.E.2d 226 , 230 (1993) (analyzing the plaintiff's likelihood of success on its misappropriation of trade secrets by determining whether the plaintiff established a prima facie case of misappropriation by showing that: "(1) [the] defendant knows or should have known of the trade secret; and (2) [the] defendant has had a specific opportunity to acquire the trade secret"), and VisionAIR, Inc. v. James, 167 N.C.App. 504 , 510-11, 606 S.E.2d 359 , 364 (2004) (clarifying that "[t]o plead misappropriation of trade secrets, a plaintif