Section 3: Illicit obtaining, use and disclosure

Abtaining a business secret is unlawful when it is done without the consent of its legitimate holder and results from: 1° Unauthorised access to any document, object, material, substance or digital file that contains the secret or from which it can be deduced, or unauthorised appropriation or copying of such items; 2° Any other behaviour considered, given the circumstances, to be unfair and contrary to commercial practice.

The use or disclosure of a business secret is unlawful when it is carried out without the consent of its legitimate holder by a person who has obtained the secret under the conditions mentioned in article L. 151-4 or who acts in breach of an obligation not to disclose the secret or to restrict its use. The production, offering or placing on the market, as well as the import, export…

The obtaining, use or disclosure of a business secret shall also be deemed unlawful where, at the time of obtaining, using or disclosing the secret, a person knew, or ought to have known in the circumstances, that the secret had been obtained, directly or indirectly, from another person who was using or disclosing it unlawfully within the meaning of the first paragraph of Article L. 151-5.