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Ten years on from the enactment of the DTSA, trade secret law has become a core pillar of U.S. IP enforcement. Over that period, courts have clarified key aspects of the statute, including reasonable measures, extraterritorial reach, damages, and the interaction between federal and state trade secret claims. At the same time, in-house counsel, litigators, and policymakers have increasingly questioned whether the DTSA is operating as originally intended, or whether targeted reform is now needed to address cost, overreach, and changing business realities. This debate will assess whether the DTSA remains fit for purpose as it enters its second decade.

  • How DTSA jurisprudence has evolved since 2016, including court treatment of reasonable measures and trade secret identification.
  • Concerns around litigation cost, discovery burden, and overbroad claims in modern DTSA cases.
  • How courts are applying the DTSA’s extraterritorial provisions under 18 U.S.C. § 1837.
  • Whether recent enforcement outcomes and damages awards align with congressional intent.
  • Review the Uniform Law Commission’s Drafting Committee’s decisions in updating the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (UTSA).

Author:

Ken Corsello

US Trade Secrets Counsel / Patent Licensing Counsel
IBM Corporation

Ken Corsello is an IP Law Counsel at IBM.  He currently focuses on drafting and negotiating patent licenses and assignment agreements.  At IBM, he has worked on patent procurement, litigation, client counseling, product clearance, and IP transactional matters. 

Before joining IBM, Ken was a law clerk to Chief Judge Glenn Archer at the Federal Circuit; an Associate Solicitor in the USPTO; and in private practice at law firms in Washington, D.C.  He did his undergraduate work in Computer Science at SUNY Stony Brook, received his JD from the Catholic University, and obtained an LL.M. from George Washington University. 

Ken has been the chair of IPO’s Trade Secrets Committee since 2016.  His recent presentations on trade secret law include participating in a panel at the USPTO’s “Trending Issues in Trade Secrets: 2019” symposium and as a witness on behalf of IPO at the 2018 hearing on “Safeguarding Trade Secrets in the United States” held by the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet. 

Ken Corsello

US Trade Secrets Counsel / Patent Licensing Counsel
IBM Corporation

Ken Corsello is an IP Law Counsel at IBM.  He currently focuses on drafting and negotiating patent licenses and assignment agreements.  At IBM, he has worked on patent procurement, litigation, client counseling, product clearance, and IP transactional matters. 

Before joining IBM, Ken was a law clerk to Chief Judge Glenn Archer at the Federal Circuit; an Associate Solicitor in the USPTO; and in private practice at law firms in Washington, D.C.  He did his undergraduate work in Computer Science at SUNY Stony Brook, received his JD from the Catholic University, and obtained an LL.M. from George Washington University. 

Ken has been the chair of IPO’s Trade Secrets Committee since 2016.  His recent presentations on trade secret law include participating in a panel at the USPTO’s “Trending Issues in Trade Secrets: 2019” symposium and as a witness on behalf of IPO at the 2018 hearing on “Safeguarding Trade Secrets in the United States” held by the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet. 

Gain firsthand insight into how judges from the PTAB and federal courts in key jurisdictions are approaching pharmaceutical and biotech patent disputes. This session offers a rare opportunity to hear directly from the decision-makers on litigation strategy, evidentiary expectations, and what most influences outcomes in complex patent cases.

Author:

Klaus Grabinski

Honorable Judge & President of the Court of Appeals
Unified Patent Court (UPC)

Klaus Grabinski

Honorable Judge & President of the Court of Appeals
Unified Patent Court (UPC)

In light of recent changes in PTAB practice under new USPTO Director John A. Squires, in-house teams are reassessing disclosure risk, IPR exposure, and long-term enforceability, particularly for manufacturing processes, algorithms, and data-driven know-how. This session focuses on how companies are making these calls in practice, and how patent strategy is directly shaping trade secret risk in later disputes.

  • How PTAB institution trends, discretionary denial, and parallel-proceeding strategy are influencing decisions to rely more heavily on trade secrets.
  • Where patent specifications, prosecution history, and expert positions have later been used to argue that information was disclosed and no longer secret.
  • Managing the risk of over-disclosure in patent filings while preserving meaningful trade secret protection.
  • When companies deliberately shift from patenting to trade secret protection over a product’s lifecycle, and what triggers that shift.

Author:

Erica LoRe

Senior Director, Intellectual Property Counsel
Invivyd

Erica LoRe

Senior Director, Intellectual Property Counsel
Invivyd

Author:

Damon Gupta

Senior Patent Counsel
Genentech

Damon Gupta is a Director, Patent Counsel at Spark Therapeutics, Inc., a leader in gene therapy and member of the Roche Group. With over a decade of experience in intellectual property (IP) law and a background in molecular biology, Damon advises biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies on patent strategy, IP transactions, and risk mitigation. At Spark, Damon leads efforts to protect proprietary assets, including trade secrets, manage IP disputes, and provides IP support to cross-functional teams, including R&D, manufacturing, and corporate transactions. Damon holds a J.D. from Chicago-Kent College of Law, an M.S. from Baylor College of Medicine, and a B.S. from The Ohio State University.

Damon Gupta

Senior Patent Counsel
Genentech

Damon Gupta is a Director, Patent Counsel at Spark Therapeutics, Inc., a leader in gene therapy and member of the Roche Group. With over a decade of experience in intellectual property (IP) law and a background in molecular biology, Damon advises biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies on patent strategy, IP transactions, and risk mitigation. At Spark, Damon leads efforts to protect proprietary assets, including trade secrets, manage IP disputes, and provides IP support to cross-functional teams, including R&D, manufacturing, and corporate transactions. Damon holds a J.D. from Chicago-Kent College of Law, an M.S. from Baylor College of Medicine, and a B.S. from The Ohio State University.

Recent court decisions in Skinny Label cases show that liability increasingly focuses on post-launch conduct and real-world use, not label text alone. A panel of leading in-house counsel and litigators with innovative, biosimilar, and regulatory perspectives will address shifting litigation strategy.

  • How branded and biosimilar companies should align legal, regulatory, and commercial behaviour.
  • Analyse GSK v. Teva (Coreg) and the evidentiary role of marketing materials, sales conduct, and physician messaging.
  • Discuss the original ruling in Amarin Pharma v. Hikma (Fed. Cir. 2024) , and examine the significance of Supreme Court review.
  • Clarify evolving boundaries of permissible conduct for medical affairs, market access, and commercial teams.
  • Compare with decisions made in other key jurisdictions including Canada and Europe.

Author:

Chuck Klein

Partner
Winston & Strawn

Chuck Klein

Partner
Winston & Strawn

Author:

Daniel Hoppe

Partner
Bonabry

Daniel Hoppe

Partner
Bonabry

Author:

Sanjaya Mendis

Partner
McCarthy Tétrault LLP

Sanjaya Mendis is a partner and life sciences IP litigator at McCarthy Tétrault LLP based in Toronto, Canada. The IP Litigation group is ranked Band 1 in Chambers and recently received the Patent Litigation Firm of the Year by LMG Life Sciences. Sanjaya handles complex cross-border contentious patent disputes and has represented clients in all levels of Canadian courts, including the Supreme Court. Sanjaya’s recent notable experience includes: Regeneron/Bayer (aflibercept); AbbVie (adalimumab); Merck (sitagliptin); and BMS/Pfizer (apixaban).

Sanjaya Mendis

Partner
McCarthy Tétrault LLP

Sanjaya Mendis is a partner and life sciences IP litigator at McCarthy Tétrault LLP based in Toronto, Canada. The IP Litigation group is ranked Band 1 in Chambers and recently received the Patent Litigation Firm of the Year by LMG Life Sciences. Sanjaya handles complex cross-border contentious patent disputes and has represented clients in all levels of Canadian courts, including the Supreme Court. Sanjaya’s recent notable experience includes: Regeneron/Bayer (aflibercept); AbbVie (adalimumab); Merck (sitagliptin); and BMS/Pfizer (apixaban).

Author:

Shana Cyr

Head of Patent Litigation
Bristol Myers Squibb

Shana Cyr

Head of Patent Litigation
Bristol Myers Squibb

Author:

Viviane Kunisawa

Partner
Daniel Law

Viviane Kunisawa

Partner
Daniel Law

Trade secret disputes increasingly involve conduct, data, and teams outside the U.S. In-house teams are finding that trade secret theft that appears “foreign” can still trigger U.S. litigation, while non-US data, employment, and disclosure rules can significantly limit how companies investigate and respond. Recent court decisions have clarified that the DTSA can reach conduct abroad, materially increasing exposure for global organisations. This session focuses on what extraterritorial trade secret risk looks like in practice and how in-house teams do ityou are adjusting their strategies.

  • How the DTSA’s extraterritorial provisions under 18 U.S.C. § 1837 are being applied in practice.
  • Lessons from Motorola Solutions v. Hytera (7th Cir. 2024), where U.S. courts allowed DTSA claims tied to foreign conduct and worldwide sales.
  • How data protection laws, data localisation, and local employment rules affect investigations and discovery outside the U.S.
  • Practical steps companies are taking to manage trade secret risk across global teams, systems, and vendors.
  • Review recent cases to learn how companies have successfull
 

Humna Khan

Head of Procurement and Product Performance
Abbott Lyon

Humna Khan

Head of Procurement and Product Performance
Abbott Lyon

Humna Khan

Head of Procurement and Product Performance
Abbott Lyon
 

Sophie Robins

Technical Lead - Food Systems UK & Europe
Forum for the Future

Sophie Robins

Technical Lead - Food Systems UK & Europe
Forum for the Future

Sophie Robins

Technical Lead - Food Systems UK & Europe
Forum for the Future
 

Phil Harris

Chief Revenue Officer
Arva Intelligence

Senior executive with deep experience in environmental markets, capital markets, financial technology, blockchain, digital supply chains, and food traceability. Specializes in corporate development, revenue strategy, commercial growth, and scaling technology solutions across global industries, with a strong track record in sales leadership, partner engagement, and investor support.

Phil Harris

Chief Revenue Officer
Arva Intelligence

Phil Harris

Chief Revenue Officer
Arva Intelligence

Senior executive with deep experience in environmental markets, capital markets, financial technology, blockchain, digital supply chains, and food traceability. Specializes in corporate development, revenue strategy, commercial growth, and scaling technology solutions across global industries, with a strong track record in sales leadership, partner engagement, and investor support.