Ohio
How E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. v. Christopher applies in Ohio: state-specific rules, key cases, and bar exam notes for Trade Secrets / Unfair Competition.
Ohio law recognizes the protection of trade secrets under the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (UTSA), aligning closely with the principles established in E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. v. Christopher. The case's emphasis on reasonable measures to protect trade secrets is reflected in Ohio's stance on the necessity of demonstrating both the existence of a trade secret and the efforts made to maintain its confidentiality.
In Ohio, a trade secret is defined as information that derives independent economic value from not being generally known or readily ascertainable, and is subject to reasonable efforts to maintain its secrecy, as outlined in R.C. 1333.61.
The court held that practices and customer lists constitute trade secrets if they provide a competitive advantage and are subject to reasonable efforts to maintain their secrecy.
The court emphasized the need for a clear and affirmative demonstration of efforts to protect proprietary information to qualify as trade secrets under Ohio law.
The court ruled in favor of protecting physician-patient confidentiality agreements as trade secrets, reinforcing the need for reasonable measures of protection to establish trade secrets.
Ohio's approach under the UTSA is largely congruent with the federal standard as established by the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA). Both frameworks require the demonstration of reasonable measures to keep information secret and provide similar definitions of what constitutes a trade secret.
Candidates should be familiar with the definitions and protections of trade secrets in Ohio, as well as key cases that illustrate the application of these principles, since trade secrets and unfair competition topics frequently appear on the Ohio bar exam.