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Copyright 2006
Cornell University.
All rights reserved.

 

Trade Secrets

Trade secrets are just what their name implies-secret. They are not publicly disclosed or registered. They are often known only by the immediate people working with the formula or process and these people usually sign a confidentiality agreement.

The formula for Coca Cola is one famous trade secret. Another is the process followed by Geiger to produce boiled wool for jackets and coats. Trade secrets can be licensed to others, such as to manufacturing companies in another country for product distribution in that country.

Confidentiality agreements are usually internal to the company rather than a formal filing with a governmental agency. The written agreement to confidentiality gives a business or a designer some control over the acts of others regarding their designs, design processes, or other property.

1. Can you use copyright law to protect your apparel designs in the U.S?
2. If you purchase artwork to use for prints on your apparel or home furnishings, who typically owns the copyright on the design?
3. Why is it so difficult for IP law to protect against knock-offs in the U.S. apparel industry? What IP laws are used to protect copying apparel designs in Europe?


 

 

 

 
   
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