Opinion ID: 1057963
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Reasonable Royalty

Text: Finally, regarding a reasonable royalty, Riley testified that she used the rule of thumb commonly used in her practice called the 25 percent rule. Application of this rule, Riley stated, would result in GSI receiving 25 percent of the profit attributable to Boeing's use of GSI's trade secret as a reasonable royalty. Riley stated this would amount to almost $175,000. Most significantly, Riley explained that she derived this sum by multiplying Boeing's alleged $700,000 unjust enrichment profit margin following Collelo's arrival by 25 percent. This means Riley's reasonable royalty calculation was based entirely upon her flawed unjust enrichment calculation discussed above. I therefore would hold that GSI did not use `a proper method and factual foundation for calculating' a reasonable royalty; and that GSI thus failed to prove `with reasonable certainty' the amount of any reasonable royalty it may have been entitled to. Id. Consequently, in my opinion, GSI's proof of damages on this issue was likewise insufficient to submit to the jury. III. After considering the evidence on appeal in the light most favorable to GSI, I would hold that GSI did not present evidence sufficient to submit its claims for damages to a jury under any of GSI's theories of recovery under the Trade Secrets Act. It plainly appears to me that GSI `has proven no cause of action against [the] defendant[s]' under the Trade Secrets Act; and that the trial court would have been `compelled to set aside any verdict found for [GSI] as being without evidence to support it.' Id. (quoting Saks Fifth Ave., Inc., 272 Va. at 188, 630 S.E.2d at 311). Thus, despite the trial court's error in concluding that one who is accused of misappropriating a trade secret must use the trade secret to compete with the holder of the trade secret, I would hold that the trial court properly sustained the defendants' motion to strike in relation to GSI's claims under the Trade Secrets Act.