Nasdaq Executive Barred From Accessing Rival MIAX's Secrets

Court rules VP of engineering can't review sensitive business information in trade secrets dispute.

Jan. 28, 2026 at 1:55pm

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A New Jersey federal court ruled that Nasdaq's vice president of engineering cannot review confidential business information belonging to rival exchange operator Miami International Holdings (MIAX) as part of a trade secrets dispute. The court said allowing the executive, who holds a senior technical position, to access MIAX's sensitive data poses a risk of that information being "un-learned" and poses minimal risk to Nasdaq's ability to prosecute the case, as the company has retained five other technical experts who can access the materials.

Why it matters

This ruling highlights the courts' efforts to balance the need for evidence gathering in trade secrets cases with the protection of confidential business information. As competition intensifies in the exchange operator industry, companies are increasingly turning to the courts to safeguard their proprietary data and processes from rivals.

The details

In the trade secrets dispute, Nasdaq had sought to have its vice president of engineering review MIAX's sensitive business information as part of the evidence-gathering process. However, the US District Court for the District of New Jersey ruled against granting the executive access, stating that it would risk the information being "un-learned" given his senior technical position. The court noted that Nasdaq has retained five other technical experts who can access the materials, minimizing any risk to the company's ability to prosecute the case.

  • The ruling was issued on January 28, 2026.

The players

Nasdaq

An exchange operator and the parent company of the Nasdaq stock exchange.

Miami International Holdings (MIAX)

A rival exchange operator to Nasdaq.

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The takeaway

This case demonstrates the courts' efforts to balance the needs of companies to gather evidence in trade secrets disputes with the imperative to protect sensitive business information from being accessed by rival executives. The ruling highlights the importance of companies retaining multiple technical experts to review confidential materials, rather than relying on a single senior executive, in order to minimize the risk of proprietary information being "un-learned" by the opposition.