Senators Hatch, Coons: Trade Secrets Bill Ready for Markup, Floor Vote
Press Release
After a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing today on the bipartisan, bicameral Defend Trade Secrets Act, authored by U.S. Senators Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and Chris Coons (D-Del), the Senators said that overwhelming, bipartisan committee support and backing of key industry leaders shows that the bill is ready to be voted out of the Judiciary Committee and considered on the Senate floor. The Defend Trade Secrets Act will help combat the loss of hundreds of billions of dollars each year in the United States to the theft of corporate trade secrets.
The bill is backed by nine members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, including: Senators Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), David Perdue (R-Ga.), and Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.).
"To safeguard American ingenuity and give companies the protections they deserve, Congress should act now to pass the Defend Trade Secrets Act, which Senator Coons and I authored earlier this year," said Senator Hatch. "Not only has our bill attracted overwhelming bipartisan support in both chambers of Congress; it has also garnered endorsements from a wide-array of industry stakeholders who know firsthand the economic losses caused by trade secret theft. Both Republicans and Democrats can agree that this bill is a win for American property rights and innovation. Why wouldn't we move this bill now?"
"Today's hearing demonstrated that we need this bill now more than ever as more and more American companies are losing jobs and revenue because they lack the ability to defend their trade secrets under federal civil law," said Senator Coons. "Companies in Delaware and across the country who drive innovation and economic growth deserve the same legal protections that other forms of critical intellectual property enjoy. I urge my colleagues to listen to the testimony from today if they have any doubt of the need for this bill that has strong support across a diverse array of industries, and I'm determined to work with with Hatch to see this bill across the finish line."
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