New Survey on the Application of the Trade Secrets Directive

In collaboration with CSIL Milan, the Trade Policy Hub at the London School of Economics and Political Science has been tasked with conducting a study to support the intermediate report on the application of the Trade Secrets Directive, as outlined in Article 18(2) of the Directive.

In June 2024, the Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG GROW) of the European Commission commissioned this study to assess the state of play of the application of the Trade Secrets Directive (TSD) in practice and recent “on the ground” developments in the area of trade secrets protection post-adoption of the TSD in order to support the intermediate report on the application of the TSD. 

The intermediate report will provide an overview of the initial lessons learned and the economic impact of the TSD, particularly in the fields of research and innovation. It will also evaluate the TSD's effects on employee mobility and the exercise of freedom of expression and information.

To accomplish this, the study will assess how the provisions of the TSD are applied in practice by small and medium enterprises (SMEs), research institutions, and larger companies. Gathering current data on the impact and obtaining feedback from key stakeholders will be essential to understanding the directive's effects and informing the study's findings. 

In this context, DG GROW and the Trade Policy Hub are inviting stakeholders to participate in a survey designed to collect their valuable insights and feedback.

The survey will be open until 1 November 2024 and can be accessible here.