The effective date of the DTSA statute is May 11, 2016. The statute is clear that you cannot sue under DTSA if all of the allegedly misappropriating activity occurred prior to this date.
However, several DTSA cases have already appeared where part of the alleged misappropriation occurs prior to May 11, 2016, while another part occurred after May 11, 2016. What happens in these cases? Courts are still grappling with this.
There is a section of the statute (18 U.S.C. 1836(b)) that explicitly states:
"For purposes of this subsection, a continuing misappropriation constitutes a single claim of misappropriation."
Note, however, that this clause appears in a section addressing application of the DTSA's 3 year statute of limitations, and is arguably not concerned with whether claims can be brought prior to the May 11, 2016 effective date of the statute.
More information on these cases can be found here:
http://www.tradesecretsnoncompetelaw.com/2017/02/articles/defend-trade-secrets-act/a-temporal-limitation-on-the-reach-of-dtsa-claims/#page=1
However, several DTSA cases have already appeared where part of the alleged misappropriation occurs prior to May 11, 2016, while another part occurred after May 11, 2016. What happens in these cases? Courts are still grappling with this.
There is a section of the statute (18 U.S.C. 1836(b)) that explicitly states:
"For purposes of this subsection, a continuing misappropriation constitutes a single claim of misappropriation."
Note, however, that this clause appears in a section addressing application of the DTSA's 3 year statute of limitations, and is arguably not concerned with whether claims can be brought prior to the May 11, 2016 effective date of the statute.
More information on these cases can be found here:
http://www.tradesecretsnoncompetelaw.com/2017/02/articles/defend-trade-secrets-act/a-temporal-limitation-on-the-reach-of-dtsa-claims/#page=1
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