Legal Question in Business Law in California

I think this should be a simple question. Would a contact list for, say, a salesman or recruiter for an employment agency be subject to a non-disclosure agreement? And, more importantly, exactly to whom does the information contained in such a list belong to? The employers? The employee? Or is this determined strictly by the language contained in such an agreement? Thanks!


Asked on 9/09/09, 11:13 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

Customer and prospective customer lists are a classic example of a trade secret. Therefore they are generally not to be disclosed even without a specific agreement. Who they belong to is more complicated. Traditionally they belong to the employer, but there are situations where it gets more complicated, such as when an employee brought his contact list with him or her. It gets even more complicated when the employee brings a list and then expands it while with the new employer. If there is an agreement that covers the issues of ownership, the language of the agreement will usually supersede the general rules of law in this kind of issue.

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Answered on 9/10/09, 1:26 am


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