Text: HF00087 Text: HF00089 Text: HF00000 - HF00099 Text: HF Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
PAG LIN 1 1 Section 1. Section 550.2, Code 1999, is amended by adding 1 2 the following new subsections: 1 3 NEW SUBSECTION. 0. "Employee" means a person who has or 1 4 once had a contractual obligation to perform labor or services 1 5 for an employer for compensation, including a person for whom 1 6 the employer withholds federal or state tax liabilities from 1 7 the employee's compensation or a person who works as an 1 8 independent contractor. 1 9 NEW SUBSECTION. 0A. "Employer" means a person who has or 1 10 once had a contractual obligation to pay compensation to an 1 11 employee for performing labor or services. An employer 1 12 includes a profit or not-for-profit enterprise, the state, or 1 13 a political subdivision of the state. 1 14 NEW SUBSECTION. 5. "Trade secret owner" means the owner 1 15 of a trade secret or a person who is authorized to act on 1 16 behalf of the owner. 1 17 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION. 550.3A EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS – 1 18 NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENT. 1 19 1. If a trade secret owner is an employer who discloses 1 20 information that is a trade secret to an employee during the 1 21 course of their employment relationship, the trade secret 1 22 owner shall notify the employee that the information is a 1 23 trade secret protected by this chapter. The notice may be 1 24 provided prior to or after the disclosure. The notice may be 1 25 provided during the employment relationship or following its 1 26 termination. 1 27 2. The notice shall include all of the following: 1 28 a. An identification of the information that is a trade 1 29 secret. The notice shall describe the information 1 30 sufficiently to allow a reasonable person to identify the 1 31 information. 1 32 b. The terms and conditions for disclosure and use by the 1 33 employee. 1 34 c. A statement explaining the right of the trade secret 1 35 owner to bring a legal action against the employee under this 2 1 chapter for misappropriation. 2 2 3. A notice appearing in at least ten point boldface type 2 3 in substantially the following form shall comply with this 2 4 section's requirement for notice: 2 5 ATTENTION 2 6 (READ CAREFULLY) 2 7 ......... (insert date) 2 8 Iowa Code Chapter 550 provides that a trade secret owner 2 9 may bring a legal action against a person who misappropriates 2 10 the trade secret. ......... (insert employer's name) claims 2 11 ownership of a trade secret of ........... (insert description 2 12 of information claimed to be a trade secret) as a trade secret 2 13 which cannot be disclosed or used except as authorized by 2 14 ............ (insert employer's name). You are authorized to 2 15 disclose or use the trade secret subject to the following 2 16 restrictions .............. (insert description of the manner 2 17 of disclosure or use authorized by the employer). If you 2 18 disclose or use this information in a manner that is not 2 19 authorized by ........... (insert employer's name), you may be 2 20 subject to litigation and liable to pay damages. 2 21 Sec. 3. Section 550.5, Code 1999, is amended to read as 2 22 follows: 2 23 550.5 DEFENSE – CONSENT OF DISCLOSURE OR FAILURE TO 2 24 PROVIDE NOTICE. 2 25 In an action brought under this chapter, a person who 2 26 discloses or uses a trade secret shall have a complete defense 2 27 to a claim of misappropriation if any of the following apply: 2 28 1. In an action for injunctive relief or damagesagainst a2 29person under this chapter,it shall be a complete defensethat 2 30 the persondisclosing a trade secretmade the disclosure or 2 31 authorized the use with the implied or express consent of the 2 32 owner of the trade secret. 2 33 2. In an action for damages, that the person was an 2 34 employee of the owner of the trade secret and all of the 2 35 following apply: 3 1 a. The trade secret was disclosed during the course of the 3 2 person's employment. 3 3 b. The person's employer failed to provide written notice 3 4 that the information disclosed to the person was a trade 3 5 secret as provided in section 550.3A. 3 6 c. The person disclosed or used the trade secret prior to 3 7 receiving the notice. 3 8 d. The person's disclosure or use was not a willful and 3 9 malicious misappropriation of the trade secret. 3 10 EXPLANATION 3 11 Code chapter 550 protects trade secrets. Code section 3 12 550.4 provides that an owner of a trade secret is entitled to 3 13 recover damages for the misappropriation. This bill provides 3 14 that if a trade secret owner is an employer who discloses 3 15 information that is a trade secret to an employee during the 3 16 course of their employment relationship, the trade secret 3 17 owner must notify the employee that the information is a trade 3 18 secret. The bill provides that in an action for 3 19 misappropriation, a person shall have a complete defense if 3 20 the person was an employee of the person, the trade secret was 3 21 disclosed during the course of the person's employment, the 3 22 person's employer provided the written notice to the person, 3 23 the person disclosed or used the trade secret prior to 3 24 receiving the notice, and the person's disclosure or use was 3 25 not a willful and malicious misappropriation of the trade 3 26 secret. 3 27 LSB 1120YH 78 3 28 da/jw/5
Text: HF00087 Text: HF00089 Text: HF00000 - HF00099 Text: HF Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
© 1999 Cornell College and League of Women Voters of Iowa
Comments about this site or page?
webmaster@legis.iowa.gov.
Please remember that the person listed above does not vote on bills. Direct all comments concerning legislation to State Legislators.
Last update: Wed Jan 12 05:55:23 CST 2000
URL: /DOCS/GA/78GA/Legislation/HF/00000/HF00088/990114.html
jhf