The need to take into account the legitimate interests of the contractual limiters
74. Still, it cannot be said that the contractual restrictions on competition and freedom of occupation are all unacceptable. It is quite possible that these cases will come in order to protect the rights and legitimate interests of those who impose them. Thus, for example, an employer who develops trade secrets is entitled to protect them, and to maintain his relative advantage even after an employee with whom he has contracted leaves his workplace. To ensure all of this, contractual restrictions can be imposed on that employee, which limit his ability to compete with the imposing limitation.
And what is a trade secret? The Commercial Torts Law comes to our aid and defines the term (in section 5( as follows:
"Trade Secret", "Secret" - business information of any kind, which is not in the public domain and which cannot be easily disclosed by others, the confidentiality of which gives its owner a business advantage over its competitors, provided that the owner takes reasonable measures to maintain its confidentiality;
Thus, the definition adopted by the legislature includes several basic elements: business information (of any kind( is on the agenda; which is not in the public domain, and cannot be easily discovered; which gives its owner an advantage over its competitors. However, this did not bring the owner of the secret to rest and inheritance. If he does not take reasonable measures to protect him, he may lose the protection of the law.
- The trade secret deserves to be protected. Not only because it is the product of the labor of its owners, but because we want, As a company, To encourage workers in the markets to develop such secrets that serve as an engine for growth, development, and progress. Here, too, the incentives that our legal system transmits to those who can develop them are significant. In many cases, the development involves a lot of labor. And if the secrets are not protected, there will be no point in investing effort in their case. After all, all the said labor would be in vain if an employee or business partner could come and copy them, exploit them and make use of them without any restrictions, and leave their key in front of a broken trough.
It is not surprising, then, that even the Commercial Torts Law, which comes to combat them, recognizes the need to encourage the development and protection of trade secrets. And one of the most effective and central ways of protecting them is by limiting the ability of those who have been exposed to them to make use of them, by means of contracts that restrict occupation and competition.