DARBUOTOJO PAREIGA SAUGOTI KOMERCINES PASLAPTIS IR KITĄ KONFIDENCIALIĄ INFORMACIJĄ: GRĖSMĖ LAISVEI PASIRINKTI DARBĄ?
EMPLOYEE'S DUTY NOT TO DISCLOSE TRADE SECRETS AND OTHER CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION: THREAT TO FREEDOM TO CHOOSE A JOB?

Summary/Abstract: The aim of the article is to identify how employee's duty not to disclose trade secrets and other confidential information is balanced against the constitutional freedom of the employee to choose a job in Lithuanian satutory and case law. This includes the question of whether the employee can lawfully use information he or she has learned during an employment relationship, both before and after the termination of employment relationship with the employer. This is a relevant problem, because in practice after the termination of labor contract the employee continues his working activity in the same market and uses experience, skills and knowledge acquired during his previous employment. The typical reaction of the former employers is to consider such activity as a violation of their trade secrets and to sue ex-employees. The topicality of the research problem is further enhanced by the fact, that the main Lithuanian legal acts, regulating both trade secrets and employment relationships, were essentially amended. To achieve the aim of the research, the new statutory law as well as the previous and current case law is analysed. The research reveals that notwithstanding the new statutory regulation of trade secrets includes safeguards to ensure the unrestricted mobility of employees and free use of the experience and skills gained in the normal course of their employment, Lithuanian case law in principle does not apply thesee provisions. In the practice of Lithuanian Supreme Court there is a clear tendency to prioritaise the interests of the employers to protect their trade secrets and other confidential information. This trend is to be criticised, because it does not correspond to the curerent Lithuanian and European regulation of trade secrets. On the other hand, the above-mentiond trend unreasanobly restricts the constitutional freedom of the employee to choose a job and, more widely, competition on the market. Besides, such case law distorts the relationship between the confidentiuality agreements and noncompetition agreements and makes the later agreements redundant.

• Details
• Contents