Last week President Barack Obama signed into law the federal Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 (or “DTSA”). In an area of law dominated by state legislation and causes of action, the DTSA is notable in that it establishes a new federal cause of action for trade secret misappropriation, and imposes new whistleblower immunity notice requirements on employers. In addition to existing state remedies available to employers and owners of trade secrets, the DTSA extends the federal protection and criminal sanctions currently provided by the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 to include civil causes of action. One untested provision of the DTSA involves a new ex parte seizure remedy, which, in theory, allows a company to request that federal marshals, without notice, seize any property necessary to prevent the dissemination of a misappropriated or stolen trade secret. Companies must demonstrate irreparable injury and a likelihood of success in being able to show the information’s qualification as a trade secret, as well as misappropriation of the information by the offending party via improper means.Of most immediate concern is the amendment Section 1833 of Title 18 of the US Code, to provide “whistleblower” immunity to individuals who disclose a third-party’s trade secret to their attorney, a court, or a government official in certain, specified circumstances. An individual may avail her/himself of this immunity in connection with criminal and/or civil liability, under federal or state law, if the person disclosed a trade secret: 1. to federal, state, or local government officials, to their attorneys, or in a sealed court document, for the purpose of reporting or investigating a suspected violation of the law; or 2. to their attorneys or in a sealed court document in connection with a lawsuit for retaliation by an employer for reporting a suspected violation of the law. As of May 11, 2016, Employers are obligated to provide express notice of this immunity to employees or contractors in any contract or agreement with an employee, contractor, or consultant which “governs the use of a trade secret or other confidential information” or, alternatively, through a cross-reference in the contract to a policy document provided to the employee, contractor, or consultant that “sets forth the employer’s reporting policy for a suspected violation of the law.” See Section 1833(b)(3) and (b)(4) of DTSA.Next Steps…Companies and employers should discuss the DTSA with their legal counsel, specifically with respect to: The DTSA’s effects on their intellectual property portfolio, and the assets they regard as trade secrets, which will now be subject to more robust protections on a federal level Template employment, consultant and contractor agreements (any agreement with some mention of confidential information or trade secrets, i.e., most of them) will need to be updated to refer to the immunity provisions of the DTSA and any amendments or addenda to pre-existing agreements which fall under the DTSA’s definition, signed on or after May 12, 2016 must contain the disclosure. Employee Handbooks and other policy documents addressing trade secrets and confidentiality will need to be revised to include the DTSA’s new whistleblower immunity notice requirements.