Hutchison v. KFC Corp.
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
51 F.3d 280 (1995)

- Written by Rich Walter, JD
Facts
Louis Hutchison (plaintiff) attempted to sell his process for making skinless fried chicken to Kentucky Fried Chicken Corporation (KFC) (defendant). KFC declined to purchase Hutchison’s process but soon thereafter began marketing its own skinless fried chicken. Hutchison sued KFC for trade-secret misappropriation under Nevada’s version of the Uniform Trade Secrets Act. The parties’ pleadings and affidavits indicated that general procedures for deskinning and marinating chicken were commonly known or readily ascertainable within the fast-food industry. The only distinctive procedures involved in Hutchison’s process were Hutchison’s procedure for manually removing chicken skin and Hutchison’s use of so-called tumble marination. However, the pleadings and affidavits revealed that KFC used a different technique for deskinning chicken and had tumble-marinated certain menu items for decades. The federal district court entered summary judgment for KFC. Hutchison appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Per curiam)
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