Unfair Competition and Trade Secret Protection
A competitor copying your products, attracting your customers with misleading statements, inducing your employees to breach their contracts or obtaining your trade secrets is unfair competition under the Turkish Commercial Code. We provide preventive advice on unfair competition and the protection of trade secrets and, in case of infringement, conduct preliminary injunction, civil and criminal proceedings.
What is unfair competition?
Unfair competition is deceptive conduct, or conduct and commercial practices contrary to good faith, that affect relations between competitors or between suppliers and customers. Denigrating a competitor or its products, creating confusion with another’s products, using another’s work product without permission, inducing customers or employees to breach their contracts and unlawfully obtaining business secrets all fall within this scope.
A person harmed by unfair competition can seek a declaration of unfair competition, its prevention, the removal of its effects and, if there is fault, damages. Some acts of unfair competition are also criminal offences.
What is a trade secret, and how is it protected?
Trade secrets are information a business keeps secret from competitors and that has economic value, such as customer lists, pricing policies, cost information, formulas, production methods and business plans. For information to be protected as a trade secret, the company must take reasonable steps to actually keep it secret.
These steps include confidentiality agreements with employees and business partners, restricting access rights, marking documents as confidential and having information returned in exit processes. Disclosure of trade secrets can be both unfair competition and a criminal offence.
Scope
- Conducting cease-and-desist, preliminary injunction and litigation processes in unfair competition cases
- Preparing confidentiality agreements and internal policies to protect trade secrets
- Running civil and criminal proceedings together when trade secrets are taken
- Defence against unfair competition allegations
How We Work
- Identifying the infringement and the rights that can be relied on: unfair competition, trade mark, copyright or trade secret
- Gathering evidence and, where necessary, evidence preservation
- Choosing the route: cease-and-desist letter, preliminary injunction or litigation
- Running the civil action and any criminal proceedings together
- Strengthening confidentiality and access processes as a preventive measure
Team
Frequently Asked Questions
A competitor is hiring away our employees. Is this unfair competition?
Hiring employees is not unfair competition in itself. However, a competitor inducing employees to breach their contracts, for example encouraging them to leave without observing the notice period, or aiming to obtain trade secrets through the hire, may amount to unfair competition.
Can we rely on unfair competition if we do not have a registered trade mark?
Yes. Unfair competition rules give protection even where there is no registered right. Copying product packaging, a business name or promotional elements in a way that creates confusion may be treated as unfair competition.
Can a preliminary injunction be obtained in an unfair competition case?
Yes. If continued unfair competition would cause serious harm, a preliminary injunction can be requested to stop the infringement until the case is decided. The request must be backed by strong evidence, and security may be required.
Is there a criminal route against a former employee who took our trade secrets?
Yes. Unlawful disclosure of trade secrets is an offence under the Turkish Criminal Code; if the information includes personal data, offences relating to personal data may also arise. The criminal process should be considered together with civil litigation and a preliminary injunction.
Would you like to discuss this service? Schedule a meeting with us — the first meeting is free of charge.
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