The Sedona Conference Working Group 12 Annual Meeting 2025

Date: 
Monday, October 6, 2025 - 8:30am to Tuesday, October 7, 2025 - 1:00pm

Location:
The Emory Conference Center Hotel
1615 Clifton Road NE
Atlanta, GA 30329

Save the dates of October 6-7, 2025, for the 2025 Working Group 12 Annual Meeting in Atlanta. A welcome reception will be held on the evening of Sunday, October 5, from 5:30 - 7:30 pm.

The primary focus of this meeting will be dialogue to obtain member comment on the following current WG12 drafting projects and advance them to publication for public comment:

  • International Trade Secret Enforcement and Protection
  • Developing an Effective "Incident Response Plan" When Trade Secret Disputes Begin
  • Trade Secret Guidance for Employees Who Change Jobs
  • When Continued Possession of Trade Secrets Post-Separation Does or Does Not Constitute Misappropriation of Trade Secrets

Another goal of the annual meeting will be to receive any final member comment and consider any public comments received on the following written materials, which are expected to be ready for publication following the Atlanta meeting:

  • The Use of Clean Rooms in Managing Trade Secret Litigation Risk
  • Exemplary Damages and Attorney Fees in Trade Secret Cases
  • DTSA Model Jury Instructions
  • Forensic Issues in Trade Secret Disputes
  • Sharing Trade Secrets with Other Organizations
  • Protecting Trade Secrets and Confidential Information Through Contract

We will also engage the Working Group in dialogue about what new topics we should pursue over the next year. Additionally, we are planning a Judicial Roundtable, including some of our Judicial Advisors who have graciously and generously supported Sedona's Working Group efforts to date.

Please join the dialogue and help us ensure that our forthcoming publications reflect the consensus, nonpartisan approach of The Sedona Conference.

To attend the Annual Meeting, you need to be a current member of The Sedona Conference Working Group Series (WGS). WGS members are eligible to take part in the activities of all Working Groups, including WG12.

We hope you can join us next October in Atlanta!

Dialogue Leaders

Hon. Laurel Beeler
U.S. District Court, Northern District of California

San Francisco, CA, USA
Hon. Cathy Ann Bencivengo
U.S. District Court, Southern District of California

San Diego, CA, USA
Hon. Hildy Bowbeer (ret.)

St. Paul, MN, USA
Hon. Simon J. Frankel
Superior Court of California, Appellate Division

San Francisco, CA, USA
Hon. Allison Goddard
U.S. District Court, Southern District of California

San Diego, CA, USA
Hon. Young Kim
US District Court - Northern District of Illinois

Chicago, IL, USA
Hon. Mary Mikva
Illinois Appellate Court

Chicago, IL USA

Working Group 12 Annual Meeting 2025 Agenda



Time Session Dialogue Leaders
  Sunday, October 5, 2025  
5:30 — 7:30 p.m. Welcome Reception  
  Monday, October 6, 2025  
7:30 — 8:30 a.m. Breakfast & Registration  
7:45 — 8:15 a.m. Orientation for first-time Sedona Conference Attendees (in breakfast area)  
8:30 — 8:45 a.m. Welcome & Announcements  
8:45 — 9:45 a.m. [Session 01] International Trade Secret Enforcement and Protection  
  At its Annual Meeting in September 2024, The Sedona Conference Working Group 12 on Trade Secrets decided to create a Brainstorming Group to address the topics of international trade secret enforcement and protection. Members of that Brainstorming Group will discuss the status of their work. This panel will also provide an update on recent developments in international trade secret litigation.
 
9:45 — 10:45 a.m. [Session 02] Protecting Trade Secrets and Confidential Information Through Contract  
  Members of this Commentary Drafting Team will discuss their final version of this Commentary and will solicit from the audience any suggested final revisions before this Commentary is published following this Annual Meeting in The Sedona Conference Journal.
 
10:45 — 11:00 a.m. Morning Break  
11:00 — 12:00 p.m. [Session 03] Developing An Incident Response Plan When Trade Secret Disputes Begin  
  This Brainstorming Group was formed following our 2024 Annual Meeting in Phoenix. They are considering how companies can anticipate and plan for trade secret incidents whether as the trade secret owner or the recipient of the trade secret information. Thinking through the appropriate steps to mitigate risk before an incident arises can produce productive outcomes when later faced with a possible claim of trade secret misappropriation.
 
12:00 — 12:45 p.m. [Session 04] Exemplary Damages and Attorney Fees In Trade Secret Cases  
  At our September 2024 Annual Meeting, this project moved forward from a Brainstorming Group to a Drafting Team. With productive discussions over the intervening months building on a strong project charter, this drafting team will discuss their draft Commentary and seek feedback from the membership on additional issues to consider within the scope of this project.
 
12:45 — 1:45 p.m. Lunch  
1:45 — 2:15 p.m. [Session 5] Brainstorming New WG12 Projects  
  In this dialogue with attendees, led by our Chair David Almeling, the Working Group will identify new projects to be advanced over the next year through our Brainstorming Group processes and by subsequently formed Drafting Teams.  Development of ideas through this important dialogue is at the core of WG12’s mission “to develop consensus and nonpartisan principles for managing trade secret litigation and well-vetted guidelines for consideration in protecting trade secrets ….”
 
2:15 — 3:15 p.m. [Session 06] Trade Secret Guidance for Employees Who Change Jobs  
  This Brainstorming Group is approaching this project from the perspective of providing guidance to employees when they change jobs, offering ideas on what steps can be taken to eliminate or mitigate trade secret risk in moving to a new position. Few resources consider these trade secret issues from the employee perspective and both employees and employers are better served when employment decisions are made with forethought and deliberation.
 
3:15 — 3:30 p.m. Afternoon Break  
3:30 — 4:30 p.m. [Session 07] DTSA Model Jury Instructions  
  This Drafting Team will update the membership on its progress in compiling a collection of trade secret jury instructions. Importantly, this Team has written explanatory summaries for particular instructions that will elucidate the issues involved and provide context for the specific instructions.
 
4:30 — 5:30 p.m. [Session 08] When Continued Possession of Trade Secrets Post-Separation Does or Does Not Constitute Misappropriation of Trade Secrets  
  Since September 2024, this Brainstorming Group has been analyzing this question of whether (and under what circumstances) continued possession of a trade secret after leaving one's previous employment is or is not misappropriation. Drawing from current case law, this group has assessed under what circumstances retention may constitute misappropriation and under what other circumstances the result may be different. The Group will seek feedback from the membership on this question and following the meeting will make a recommendation on whether a discussion paper is warranted via a Drafting Team.
 
5:30 — 7:30 p.m. Reception (guests invited)  
     
  Tuesday, October 7, 2025  
7:00 — 8:00 a.m. Breakfast & Registration  
8:00 — 8:35 a.m. [Session 09] Fireside Chat with the DOJ  
  Anand Patel, from the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section of the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice (CCIPS), will join us in a fireside chat to discuss a variety of topics, including the current DOJ climate, the types of cases that might get investigated, how and what to include in a referral, the scope of investigations for domestic and overseas actors, and hot topics in trade secret criminal indictments and cases.  We’re pleased to hear from this DOJ leader in a conversational setting about the DOJ Criminal Division’s current activities and priorities.
 
8:35 — 9:10 a.m. [Session 10] Forensic Issues in Trade Secret Disputes  
  This Drafting Team will be presenting its final version of its Forensic Issues Commentary seeking membership input. Comprised of forensic experts and trade secret litigators, this Drafting Team will discuss its recommendations and its forensic protocol included as an exhibit to the Commentary.
 
9:10 — 9:45 a.m. [Session 11] Sharing Trade Secrets With Other Organizations  
  This Drafting Team will present its final version of its Commentary exploring the ways in which both a disclosing party and a receiving party can mitigate their trade secret infringement risk by using contractual, physical and technological tools to avoid claims of misappropriation. Following this meeting, and consideration of meeting comments, this Commentary will be submitted to The Sedona Conference Journal for publication.
 
9:45 — 10:15 a.m. Morning Break  
10:15 — 10:50 p.m. [Session 12] Use of Clean Rooms to Minimize Misappropriation Risk  
10:50 — 11:50 p.m. [Session 13] Trade Secrets from the In-House Perspective  
11:50 — 12:50 p.m. [Session 14] Judicial Roundtable: Voices From The Bench  
  This panel of expert judges will discuss important trade secret litigation issues and will also provide guidance on effective advocacy.
 
12:50 — 1:05 p.m. Closing Statements  
1:05 p.m. Grab-&-Go Lunch (provided)  

*(Panel Moderator)