Have you ever considered why certain companies or products are successful? This isn't an easy question to answer, but one common aspect among successful businesses and companies is that they have something unique about them. Maybe a part of the product is unique, or the production process is unique, or the methodology behind a product is unique. These things, and even the more intricate details or aspects of these things, are called "trade secrets," and protecting them is vital to any company that wants to succeed.

But now consider another question: how do you protect a trade secret? Again, the answer isn't so simple. However, there are laws in the United States that protect trade secrets. In order for this to work, though, the company and its employees need to go the extra mile to ensure the trade secret's safety.

Preparing legal documentation for your trade secret is a crucial first step, but you need to identify your trade secret first and foremost. This really needs to be thoroughly considered. Are you protecting an entire production process or just one little part of it? Are you protecting one part of a product or the recipe for a product?

Once this has been decided and your paperwork is completed, there are many steps a company can take to protect itself. For example, have proper HR and security protocols in place. Make sure information is stored correctly by all employees, and secure computers and login credentials and processes. Have security for your office, warehouse, etc. and limit access to certain key areas. And, of course, train your employees so that they know the value of the trade secret and why it must be protected (and how they can protect it).

The author's opinions expressed in this article are strictly his/her own and should not be attributed to any others, including other attorneys at Klein DeNatale Goldner or the law firm as a whole.