Trade secrets consist of information including a formula, pattern, compilation, computer programs, device, method, technique or process. To meet the legal requirements for trade secret used in business has actual and give an opportunity to obtain an economic advantage from not being generally known to the public or to other persons who can obtain economic value from its disclosure or use and the information the subject of reasonable measures to maintain its secrecy.Actual or potential economic valueA trade secret must consist of actual or potential economical value information.
In this case Oriental Furniture Inc.
have may important obligation including the Manufacturing and Commercial business information among many facts developed by the Oriental Furniture Inc. which give then competitive advantage in the market like the computer program which include the process of the minimize the amount of wood waste and some confidential contract of pricing and discounts with raw supplier which help them to reduce their price compare to other competitors like if we compare the price of the similar product of writing desk offered by the Oriental Furniture Inc. is $1189 (here) with the competitor Oriental furniture warehouse offering online on is $1,586 have the significant difference give them a competitive advantage to acquire more customers who are looking for the same type of product. Also, company use custom machine process and lacquer made from the company’s own formula to maximize the color, shine and durability of the desk’s finish. The Oriental Furniture Inc. obtain economic benet from this information. In other words, it has some economical value from the fact that it is not known, and therefore cannot be put to use, by others. This value is independent of any intrinsic value that the information might have. To look at this element in still another way, information has the requisite independent economic value if a potential competitor or other interested person would have to expend time and money to nd or develop it.The information cannot be generally knownThe second most legal requirements are the information has to be secret in the sense that it cannot be information that is generally known or information that can be easily or readily discovered by some proper means. In this case many facts developed by the Oriental Furniture Inc. which give then competitive advantage in the market include computer program which minimize the amount of wood waste, manufacturing process and own lacquer formula developed by the company to maximize the color, shine and durability of desk and the other pricing and discounts from its raw material supplier that information generally not know by the competitor or public which would be fall under the legal requirements to protect the trade secrete while other information which is disclosed with other without any non-discloser or non-compete agreement including the marketing plan, company’s market forecast, internal financial information, pricing strategies, list of retailer and distributor in addition drawing showing the exact dimensions and measurement of desk’s design which is can be discovered by some reverse engineering as proper means would not be consider as a trade secrets and likely not meet the legal requirement for trade secret. Information has to be subject to reasonable measures to maintain its secrecyThe information must be treated as a secret by Oriental Furniture Inc. and be the subject of reasonable efforts to maintain its secrecy. For information to acquire and maintain trade secret status, its Oriental Furniture must input reasonable efforts to maintain its secrecy. In this case the Oriental Furniture put effort to protect the Manufacturing secrete through various confidential contracts like non-discloser and Non-compete with its outsourced manufacturer to protect the information like drawing, dimensions and desk’s design plan include the computer program which instruct manufactures to cut the wood with minimum waste and the pricing and discounts for the raw material. To increase the trade manufacturing secretes company shipped unfinished to its production facility to apply black lacquer and decorated mother of pearl applique which is the essential because they used custom process and to apply lacquer made from the company’s own formula in which we can assume that company giving the training their employees to maintain legal obligation and added matter of non-disclosure and non-compete in their employment contract. By the legal aspect company’s manufacturing secretes would be consider the trade secrets as company put the significant measures and effort to protect the trade secrets and fulfill the legal requirements.While haven’t made significant efforts to protect commercial secrets including the company’s market forecast, marketing plan, internal financial information, pricing strategies and list of its retailers and distributes by sharing the information with potential investors with any legal documentations and contracts including the non-discloser and non-compete provisions. By the legal aspect company’s commercial secretes would not fulfill the legal requirements as company did not use significant measures or effort to protect the trade secrets.