In Search of a Time Limit for the Trade Secret Right

The essay analyzes the rule of the Directive on the undisclosed know-how and business information and the relative National laws on the limitation term applicable to the claims and actions provided for by the same Directive. The limitation term, according to the Directive, “shall not exceed 6 years”. The author points out the existence of a strong interest in setting a second and different term to the trade secret rights, i.e., a duration term, a real time limit, underlining also that today the commercial secrets generally lose their economic value in a time span of few years. Even in the absence of such a rule, the essay suggests that any legal protection must be denied to the trade secrets that have lost their economic value.