The enactment of the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 expanded the available courses of action for aggrieved parties to protect their trade secrets. Signed into law on May 11, 2016, the Act gives federal courts jurisdiction over trade secret cases and allows individuals to bring a private cause of action in federal court.

Aggrieved parties have long been able to sue in federal court for copyright, patent, and trademark violations. Surprisingly, no corresponding private cause of action has existed for trade secret theft. Instead, trade secret cases were the domain of state courts.

When most people think of waterfalls, the first thing that comes to mind is likely Niagara or Victoria. Waterfalls in the legal sense are not nearly as breathtaking or awe-inspiring as these natural curtains of water. Nonetheless, when properly drafted, a distribution waterfall in an operating agreement is a fairly impressive provision.