A non disclosure agreement (NDA), often called a confidentiality agreement, protects your business’s information when it isn’t generally known to the public. Time and time again in the business world, there’s financial incentive to make sure you keep your secrets well…secret. For example, well before Sarah Palin’s book was released, it was widely known that San Diegan Lynn Vincent was Palin’s ghostwriter, so why didn’t the press manage to get any information from her before the book’s release? Not surprisingly, Vincent’s lips were sealed by a non disclosure agreement, reported San Diego Union Tribune columnist Diane Bell. Just as Palin’s publisher uses all tools available to protect its own interests, your business likely has confidential information that gives you a competitive advantage over others, such as:
- Confidential client or customer lists
- Marketing plans
- Manufacturing processes
- Formulas or recipes
- Information or materials shared about your product, brand, designs, or other intellectual property
- Terms and conditions of services provided to clients
These may be considered trade secrets, and you often have to share this information with others in order to pursue opportunities and expand, or for practical reasons such as when you interview prospective employees. Consequently, your business has to take the right steps to ensure that your proprietary information remains secret and outside of your competitor’s reach. If you don’t, and someone reveals your confidential information, then the chances are you won’t be able to hold them legally responsible to you for your financial loss. For this reason, not only is it important to use non disclosure agreements, but even before having someone sign an NDA, you have to be careful about whom you disclose confidential information to, and make sure you only disclose information to the extent necessary.
In doing so, generic NDAs can be easy to use, but can often provide a false sense of protection. That’s because when creating a non disclosure agreement, it’s important that its terms are tailored to your situation and are shaped by California law. This will strengthen the likelihood that your NDA will be upheld in court if needed. A fine line must be walked when drafting a confidentiality agreement, and we’ll work to create an NDA that’s specific enough to be legally enforceable, while being broad enough to cover all confidential information. A non disclosure agreement is a valuable deterrent, although it can’t guarantee that someone won’t reveal your trade secrets or use the information for their personal benefit. Even so, by using an NDA you may be able to sue for compensation for the harm suffered or for the profits gained by a competitor, or take legal action to stop someone from further disclosing your trade secrets. Act soon to guard against a confidentiality breach, and by doing so you’ll protect the time, effort, and money you’ve invested in your business. For help in securing your trade secrets through a non disclosure agreement, or if someone has misappropriated your confidential information, be sure to reach our skilled business lawyers at San Diego Law Firm by calling (619) 794-0243.
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