North Carolina-based Epic Games filed a lawsuit over the alleged leak of secret information related to Fortnite Chapter 2. The company claims employee Ronald Sykes violated the terms of a non-disclosure agreement by sharing information related to the new game, including new game-play features and a virtual map of the fictional game universe, prior to its public release. The success of Epic Games’ claims will primarily hinge on whether the non-disclosure agreement is enforceable and whether the allegedly leaked information constituted protected trade secrets. Non-Disclosure Agreements A non-disclosure agreement (“NDA”) is a contract, or part of a contract, that prohibits one or more parties from disclosing certain confidential…
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DUKE’S MAYONNAISE TRADEMARK DISPUTE
Duke’s Mayonnaise can trace its roots to 1917 in Greenville, South Carolina. Founder Eugenia Duke developed a recipe for mayonnaise to add to sandwiches she sold to soldiers fighting in World War I. Eventually, the sandwich shop became an independent business – the Duke Sandwich Company – and Duke’s mayonnaise continued to be produced by new owner C.F. Sauer Company. Nearly 100 years later, C.F. Sauer Company is suing Duke Sandwich Company over alleged trademark infringement and trademark dilution. C.F. Sauer’s lawsuit claims other causes of action, including unfair competition, which fall outside of the scope of this article. A Foundation in Trademark Law The Lanham Act protects…
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NO MORE COURT TIME FOR JORDAN “JUMPMAN” COPYRIGHT DISPUTE
Is there a better time than March Madness to talk about basketball? The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently affirmed the lower court’s dismissal of a claim by photographer Jacobus Rentmeester that sports apparel company Nike infringed a copyright owned by Rentmeester. The Plaintiff created this photograph – Michael Jordan airborne dunking a basketball – for a Life magazine article covering athletes who would soon feature in the 1984 Olympic Games. Jordan, then a student-athlete at the University of North Carolina, would go on to play for the United States Men’s Basketball Team in the Olympics that summer. Nike later utilized a similar photograph of Jordan to create its…
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IN THE MARKET FOR TRADE SECRETS
In early March, retail grocery store company Aldi, Inc. filed a lawsuit in the Eastern District of North Carolina against two former employees who joined rival company Lidl US. The two former employees, Bruna Maraccini and Colleen Savory, are named as Defendants in the complaint. Both were involved in the company’s real estate strategy and acquisition efforts, and are alleged to have misappropriated trade secrets of their former company for the benefit of their new company. The complaint also alleges that Ms. Maraccini, who was a director of real estate for North Carolina and Virginia while at Aldi, violated confidentiality, non-compete, and non-solicitation agreements by accepting a similar position with…
