In an interview with The American Lawyer, Keker, Van Nest & Peters partner Warren Braunig weighed in on a trade secret dispute where IBM has sued to block Microsoft from hiring away its chief diversity officer. In seeking to enjoin the hire of Lindsay-Rae McIntyre for one year, IBM argues that the company’s “diversity data, strategies and initiatives” are confidential information it doesn’t want falling into the hands of a competitor.
“Typically you see trade secrets cases involving either technology, customer lists or business strategies,” Braunig said. The case might reflect that companies are increasingly “thinking about their diversity efforts as something that can provide them a competitive advantage.
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