Companies in all industries and fields of technology — including automotive, software, chemical, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, and biotechnology — have long needed a federal civil remedy for trade secret theft. They invest significant resources to develop proprietary know-how, such as manufacturing processes, industrial techniques, formulas, codes, and designs. The Intellectual Property Owners Association, a trade association representing more than 200 of these companies, recently adopted a resolution supporting the Defend Trade Secrets Act, which creates a federal civil cause of action for the owner of a misappropriated trade secret.

The DTSA was approved unanimously by the Senate Judiciary Committee and is up for a vote by the full Senate on Monday, April 4. The bill has broad support from industry and within Congress. In fact, more than 60 Senators have co-sponsored S. 1890 and there are more than 125 co-sponsors of its House counterpart (H.R. 3326). We are enthusiastically optimistic that the bill will pass the Senate and urge the House to take it up without delay — the time to act to protect our trade secrets is now.