Since the passage of the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) in 2016, US district courts have served as a battleground for high-stakes trade secret litigation—and that trend shows no sign of slowing.
In this Insights, CRA’s Intellectual Property Practice consultants take a closer look at trade secret case filings and developments from the first half of 2025.
Three developments include:
- A surge in case filings: 15% increase in federal trade secret cases compared to the first half of 2024;
- An escalation in AI cases: 80% jump in cases mentioning “artificial intelligence” (36 vs. 20 cases), including high-profile disputes over robot technology and medical AI source code; and
- Large damages at stake: Over $485 million awarded in the first half of 2025, with individual cases reaching $223 million+ and claimants’ win percentages rising from pre-trial judgments to trial verdicts.