Trademark, Copyright, and Trade Secret Disputes

There are a wide variety of intellectual property disputes. This article focuses exclusively on trademark, copyright and trade secret disputes (“TCT disputes”), leaving patent disputes for another white paper.

The parties’ desire for confidentiality of their sensitive business information, the frequency of ongoing business relationships between them, and the existence of international parties make arbitration an advantageous dispute resolution process for trademark, copyright and trade secret disputes.

TCT disputes can range from the simple domain name dispute over rights to Internet domain names that incorporate the trademarks of others to highly complex trademark licensing and trade secret misappropriation disputes.

Particularly when trade secrets are involved or important corporate relationships are implicated, the availability of a level of confidentiality not available in the courts can make arbitration the ideal dispute resolution mechanism.

In arbitration, parties can select arbitrators knowledgeable about laws, regulations and the industry relevant to the trademark, copyright, or trade secret dispute, as well as relevant practice experience such as enforcement and licensing of intellectual property.

This article will discuss TCT disputes commonly brought to arbitration, possible considerations and issues relating to them, and rule selection and drafting issues that may arise in considering arbitration clauses governing potential TCT disputes.