Restatement (First) of Torts § 757 (1939)

• Author: Joanna H. Kim-Brunetti - Jeffrey K. Riffer - Gregory S. Bombard - Emily J. Friedman
• Pages: 241-251

241

APPENDIX D

Restatement (First)

of Torts § 757 (1939)

Restatement, Torts, copyright © 1939 by The American Law Institute.

Reproduced with permission. All rights reser ved.

§ 757. Liability for Disclosure or Use of Another’s

Trade Secret—General Principle

One who discloses or uses another’s trade secret, without a privilege

to do so, is liable to the other if

(a) he discovered the secret by improper means, or

(b) his disclosure or use constitutes a breach of confidence

reposed in him by the other in disclosing the secret to him,

or

(c) he lea rned the secret from a third person with notice of the

facts that it was a secret and that the third person discov-

ered it by improper means or that the third person’s disclo-

sure of it was otherwise a breach of his duty to the other, or

(d) he le arned the secret with notice of the facts that it was a

secret and that its disclosure was made to him by mistake.

Comment:

a. Rationale. The privilege to compete with others (see § 708, vol. III)

includes a privilege to adopt their business methods, ideas or pro-

cesses of manufacture. Were it otherwise, the first person in the field

with a new process or idea would have a monopoly which would tend

to prevent competition. This privilege has some limitations, however.

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