There is no specific statute which governs trade secrets. Trade secrets are primarily protected under common law and under the law of contract in Hong Kong.

– WTO's TRIPS Agreement, since January 1, 1995.
– Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, Stockholm Act, with effect from July 1, 1997.

Definition: there is no single definition of a trade secret in Hong Kong. In AXA China Region Insurance Co Ltd v. Pacific Century Insurance Co Ltd (HCA 9093 of 2000), it was held that a trade secret or its equivalent must be information which: (1) is used in a trade or business; (2) is confidential, i.e. not already in the public domain; (3) can be easily isolated from other information which the employee is free to use so that any person of average intelligence and honesty would think it is improper to use the information at the disposal of his new employer; (4) which, if disclosed to a competitor, would be liable to cause real or significant harm to the owner; and (5) which the owner of the information must limit its dissemination or at least not encourage or permit its widespread publication or otherwise impress upon the employee the confidentiality of the information.

Assignment - licensing: trade secrets are intellectual property rights on confidential information which may be sold or licensed under the law of contract in Hong Kong.

Remedies for misappropriation: injunctions, damages, account of profits and delivery up and destruction under oath are the usual remedies available in a case of trade secret infringement.