
A recent scandal unites two of my favorite passions: college football and trade secret litigation. As most sports fans are aware, the University of Michigan’s polarizing head coach Jim Harbaugh was suspended last Friday by the Big Ten Conference as part of a disciplinary action against Michigan for improperly recording and stealing signs in violation of the conference’s Sportsmanship Policy. The scandal unfolded quickly as the NCAA announced it was investigating Michigan’s football team on October 20, and then metastasized as The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal began to cover it. Michigan has a splendid football team this year and one of the strongest teams in college football. But from my vantage point, Michigan’s administration has put that potential championship season at risk by mishandling its response to the scandal and provoking a confrontation with the Big Ten’s Commissioner, Tony Petitti. As explained below, Michigan’s mistakes provide a case study for parties accused of stealing another’s trade secrets on how to avoid the hard lessons that Michigan is absorbing now.
Continue Reading Five Lessons Trade Secret Defendants Can Learn from the Michigan Sign-Stealing Scandal