NDAs & Confidentiality

Articles

When a Confidentiality Clause Becomes a Federal Violation: The SEC's $18 Million J.P. Morgan Whistleblower Order

The SEC's largest stand-alone Rule 21F-17(a) settlement turned a routine settlement-release clause into an enforcement event, showing that NDAs are now read for what they silence, not just what they protect.

February 15, 2026

NDAs & Confidentiality

Brown v. TGS Management: When a Confidentiality Clause Becomes an Illegal Noncompete

A California appellate court voided an employer's sweeping confidentiality provisions as a de facto noncompete that barred a trader from his profession for life.

September 23, 2025

NDAs & Confidentiality

BladeRoom v. Emerson: The Two-Year NDA That Ate a $60 Million Verdict

The Ninth Circuit held that a sunset clause unambiguously ended an NDA's confidentiality obligations after two years, vacating a verdict built on later conduct.

June 17, 2025

NDAs & Confidentiality

Convolve v. Compaq: When the NDA's Own Marking Rules Defeat the Secret

The Federal Circuit held that a disclosing party who ignored its NDA's written-designation protocol lost trade-secret protection at the moment of disclosure.

February 11, 2025