THE BASICS
Trade secrets: protection by keeping it confidential
A trade secret is information that is valuable because it's kept secret, such as a recipe, formula, process, code or customer list.
There's no registration and no fixed end date. It is typically protected only while reasonable steps are taken to keep it confidential: limiting who can see it, using NDAs (non-disclosure agreements) and marking documents as confidential.
Protection is typically lost once it becomes public. It also doesn't stop someone from creating the same thing on their own, or from working it out by taking a product apart (called reverse engineering).
That's why many food and software founders keep a recipe or code as a trade secret instead of publishing it. Pathset never asks for the secret itself, only whether there is one.
Why this matters to your business
A secret recipe or process can be the heart of a business. Because protection depends on how it's handled, everyday habits matter: who knows it, where it's written down, and what people agreed to. Buyers commonly ask how a key secret is kept secret.
What an attorney will want to know
- Who knows the secret today, including staff and partners
- Where it's written down or stored
- Any NDAs or confidentiality agreements already signed
- Whether any part of it has been shared in public
Ask your attorney
What steps keep my recipe confidential?
Do my current agreements cover confidentiality?
General information, not legal advice. An attorney confirms how this applies to you.