Protect the Information Your Business Depends On

A trade secret is business information that is valuable because others don’t know it, and that the owner works to keep secret. If a departing employee may have taken customer lists, pricing, or other company information, Florida law gives you ways to respond. Speed matters, because Florida’s time limit runs from when you discover the problem. KEW Legal works as outside general counsel for business owners and investors in Miami-Dade and South Florida. This page explains what a trade secret attorney for employers Florida businesses call should review first.

What Trade Secret Protection Covers for Florida Employers

A trade secret is information that has economic value because others can’t easily learn it, and that you take reasonable steps to keep secret. Florida defines the term in Fla. Stat. § 688.002. The definition reaches formulas, patterns, compilations, programs, devices, methods, techniques, and processes.

Employers usually recognize these as trade secrets:

• Customer lists and contact histories
• Pricing and margin models
• Supplier terms and cost data
• Marketing plans that are not yet public
• Formulas, proprietary software, and internal processes

Labeling alone does not make information a trade secret. Protection works best when these steps are in place before anyone resigns.

Warning Signs a Departing Employee May Have Taken Company Information

The most useful warning signs are changes in how an employee handled company information shortly before leaving. Patterns worth recording include:

• Large downloads or copying close to the resignation date
• Forwarding work files to personal email
• Syncing company folders to personal cloud storage or USB drives
• Opening customer records with no business reason
• Contacting customers about a new venture
• Asking coworkers to join a competing business

Write down the date, the system involved, and what you saw. Note who else observed it and where the record is kept. Don’t confront the employee, and don’t try to reach personal devices or accounts. Those moves can weaken your position. Call counsel before you change access, because some changes can overwrite logs you’ll need.

What the Representation Includes

Here is what a trade secret attorney for employers Florida companies work with typically handles. Outside counsel protects the evidence, reviews the agreements, and chooses a response that fits the facts. Common steps include:

• Evidence preservation. A written preservation demand goes to the former employee. Company email, servers, and devices are secured so data isn’t overwritten.
• Agreement review. Counsel reviews confidentiality, non-solicitation, and non-compete terms. Under Fla. Stat. § 542.335, a court won’t enforce a restrictive covenant unless it is in a writing signed by the person against whom enforcement is sought. The business must also prove a legitimate business interest.
• Demand letters. A written demand can require return or destruction of company information, with a written certification of compliance and an end to any use.
• Court relief when warranted. Under Fla. Stat. § 688.003, actual or threatened misappropriation may be enjoined. Damages are addressed in Fla. Stat. § 688.004.
• Ongoing outside general counsel. Counsel can recommend changes to policies, onboarding, and exit procedures so the next departure is easier to protect.

Related problems may arrive alongside trade secret concerns, such as theft of company money, unreturned company property, or commission disputes.

How the Process Works and What to Expect

The process usually moves through five steps, from a confidential intake to court only if needed.

1. Intake. You describe what you know, the employee’s role, and which agreements are in place.
2. Preservation. Written preservation instructions go out, and technical collection is coordinated so the record stays intact.
3. Assessment. Counsel reviews the facts, agreements, and evidence, then explains realistic options.
4. Response. This may be a demand letter or a negotiated return-and-certification process.
5. Escalation. If needed, counsel files suit in court to seek an injunction and damages.

The timeline depends on the facts, the evidence available, and the court’s schedule. For that reason, counsel gives a case-specific outline instead of a fixed schedule. Courts also protect secrecy during a case. Under Fla. Stat. § 688.006, a court must preserve the secrecy of an alleged trade secret by reasonable means, such as sealing records. For covered noncompete agreements with a covered employee whose primary place of work is in Florida, Fla. Stat. § 542.45 makes the agreement fully enforceable only if the employee was advised in writing of the right to seek counsel before signing and received the proposed agreement at least 7 days before the offer expired. Full enforceability also depends on the employee acknowledging in writing that he or she will receive confidential information or customer relationships.

Deadlines and Why Speed Matters

Florida gives three years to bring a trade secret misappropriation claim. The clock starts when the misappropriation is discovered, or when it should have been discovered with reasonable diligence. Fla. Stat. § 688.007 sets that limit. A continuing misappropriation counts as a single claim under the same section.

Three points follow from that rule:

• The clock depends on discovery, so write down when and how you learned of the problem.
• Evidence degrades quickly. Deleted files, overwritten logs, and returned devices all make early preservation important.
• Waiting can make it harder to show what happened and when.

Speed matters for another reason. Under Fla. Stat. § 688.005, a court may award reasonable attorney’s fees to the prevailing party if a misappropriation claim was made in bad faith, if a motion to terminate an injunction was made or resisted in bad faith, or if willful and malicious misappropriation exists. A careful review of the facts before any accusation protects the business.

Why Employers Work with KEW Legal on This Issue

KEW Legal focuses its practice on business law, including employment matters on the employer side. The firm serves owners, investors, and employers in Miami-Dade and South Florida from offices in Coral Gables and Sunny Isles Beach. Kristina E. Wilson is the lawyer responsible for this page. Natalie Martinez is also one of the firm’s lawyers.

For employers, a trade secret attorney for employers Florida businesses call should understand both the lawsuit side and the everyday policy side. Where the firm serves as outside general counsel, its lawyers can review contracts and policies before a problem arises. That matters because trade secret cases turn on what the business did to protect its information every day, not only on what happened at departure.

Common Questions Employers Ask About Trade Secret Claims