Eastman refines further the pleading standard in trade secret cases. In general, there is no heightened pleading standard for trade secret cases after Twombly/Iqbal; a plaintiff is not required “to plead all of the relevant facts in detail.” However, a plaintiff can’t simply point to an area of technology or refer generally to information or business methods. The goal of the pleading standard is to provide notice to defendants of the substance of the claims against them. In the context of claims for trade secret misappropriation, this goal must be balanced with the need to maintain secrecy. Disclosure of the actual trade secret is not required.
Here, the alleged deficiencies in the pleadings were 1) a failure to identify the particular employees alleged to have stolen the trade secrets; 2) a failure to identify the trade secrets that were allegedly misappropriated; and 3) a failure to show use or disclosure of the alleged trade secrets. After a review of the facts set forth by the plaintiff, and case law from other states applying UTSA statutes, the Magistrate judge found that by identifying a group of employees, referring to the alleged trade secrets as information “relating to the manufacture of PET” and Eastman’s “IntegRex technology,” and alleging their use in start-up of a new plant, Eastman had properly disclosed sufficient information to meet the Rule 8 pleading requirements and state a claim.