Altavion v. KMSL extends trade secret protection to valuable design concepts even when those design ideas are shared during a negotiation.

Implications -

In Altavion v. KMSL, the California Court of Appeal rules that trade secret protection applied to Altavion’s design concepts even though Altavion shared its design ideas with a competitor. The ruling extends trade secret protection in California to design concepts that are not publicly disclosed and have independent economic value, creating a roadmap for inventors to protect their design concept information. The ruling also serves as a warning for companies receiving design concepts during a negotiation that those concepts may be protected as trade secrets.