[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"advice-en-nda-contract":3},{"slug":4,"title":5,"excerpt":6,"body":7,"datePublished":8,"dateModified":8},"nda-contract","Non-disclosure agreement (NDA) — what to include and enforce","How to write an effective NDA: definition of information, duration, liquidated damages and link to the statutory trade secret under Polish law.","\u003Cp>A non-disclosure agreement (NDA in business shorthand) binds the party receiving information not to disclose it or use it outside the agreed purpose. In Polish law it is not a nominate contract — the parties shape its content freely, and protection is reinforced by the provisions on trade secrets and liquidated damages. A well-drafted NDA is also evidence that the firm takes care of confidentiality, which matters in any potential dispute.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>Why sign an NDA if the Act already exists\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Cp>The \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fisap.sejm.gov.pl\u002Fisap.nsf\u002FDocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20260000085\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Act on Combating Unfair Competition\u003C\u002Fa> protects trade secrets, i.e. technical, technological, organisational or other information of economic value which is not generally known or easily accessible. There is one but crucial condition: the entitled party must with due diligence take steps to keep it confidential. An NDA is one such step.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>The agreement also provides tools that the Act does not expressly give:\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cul>\u003Cli>it precisely sets out what is confidential — including information that might not meet the statutory definition;\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>it allows a contractual penalty to be stipulated, which is pursued without proving the amount of loss;\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>it regulates the return or destruction of materials after cooperation ends;\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>it designates the court with jurisdiction and the applicable law — important for foreign counterparties.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003C\u002Ful>\u003Ch2>Typical situations in which it is worth signing\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Cul>\u003Cli>talks with an investor or buyer of the business, combined with a review of the company's documents;\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>cooperation with a subcontractor running their own firm, who works on source code, client databases or price lists;\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>negotiations on a joint project, before the main contract is drawn up;\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>handover of documentation to an accounting firm, auditor or IT company (here a separate personal data processing agreement under RODO (GDPR) is often also needed).\u003C\u002Fli>\u003C\u002Ful>\u003Cp>For employees under an employment contract the duty of discretion applies by operation of law: under \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fisap.sejm.gov.pl\u002Fisap.nsf\u002FDocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20260001245\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Article 100 of the Labour Code\u003C\u002Fa>, an employee must keep secret information whose disclosure could expose the employer to harm. A separate agreement is useful, however, to specify the scope of that information, and protection after employment ends is provided by a non-compete agreement for which the employer pays compensation.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>Key clauses — a checklist\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Col>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Parties and direction\u003C\u002Fstrong> — whether information is disclosed by one party (one-sided agreement) or by both (mutual). It is worth covering also affiliated companies and advisers of the receiving party.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Definition of confidential information\u003C\u002Fstrong> — categories (e.g. source code, client data, commercial terms, product plans) rather than the generality \"all information\". Too broad a definition makes enforcement harder, too narrow one leaves gaps.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Exclusions\u003C\u002Fstrong> — information publicly available, previously known to the receiving party, obtained independently or disclosed on the demand of a court or authority.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Purpose and permitted use\u003C\u002Fstrong> — e.g. solely to prepare an offer or perform a specific contract.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Persons with access\u003C\u002Fstrong> — employees and associates who need to know the information, bound by a similar duty.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Duration\u003C\u002Fstrong> — the term of cooperation plus a defined period after it ends. For secrets with long-term value (recipes, algorithms), protection can be set until the information becomes public.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Contractual penalty and damages\u003C\u002Fstrong> — amount per breach and a reservation that the creditor may pursue damages exceeding the penalty.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Return and deletion of materials\u003C\u002Fstrong> — deadline and confirmation method (e.g. a declaration of permanent deletion of files).\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Applicable law and jurisdiction\u003C\u002Fstrong> — especially with a counterparty from another country.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003C\u002Fol>\u003Ch2>Contractual penalty — how to set it\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Cp>Under \u003Ca href=\"https:\u002F\u002Fisap.sejm.gov.pl\u002Fisap.nsf\u002FDocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20260000795\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Articles 483–484 of the Civil Code\u003C\u002Fa>, a contractual penalty is due in the stipulated amount regardless of the amount of loss. Claiming damages above the penalty is possible only if the contract so provides — worth remembering when drafting the clause. The debtor may, however, demand a reduction of the penalty if it is grossly excessive.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Cp>Example: an IT firm gives a subcontractor access to a client's repository. The agreement provides PLN 50,000 of penalty per breach and the right to pursue higher damages. If the subcontractor shares a fragment of code with a competitor, the firm does not have to show how much it lost to claim the penalty. If the actual loss — e.g. losing the contract — is bigger, it can pursue the surplus by proving it on general rules. The penalty amount should bear a reasonable relation to the value of the protected information; a token amount does not deter, and an absurdly high one will be reduced by the court.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>What if a breach occurs\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Cul>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Contractual claims\u003C\u002Fstrong> — contractual penalty, damages, demand to cease the breach.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Claims under the Act on Combating Unfair Competition\u003C\u002Fstrong> — among others, cessation of prohibited acts, removal of their effects, remedying the loss and surrendering unjustly obtained benefits. They are time-barred after three years, separately for each breach.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>\u003Cstrong>Criminal liability\u003C\u002Fstrong> — disclosing or using a trade secret in breach of duty, which causes serious harm, is punishable by a fine, restriction of liberty or imprisonment of up to 2 years.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003C\u002Ful>\u003Cp>In each of these tracks, evidence is key: which documents were handed over, to whom and when. For this reason it is worth keeping a disclosure register and marking files as confidential.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>The most common mistakes\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Cul>\u003Cli>A ready template downloaded from the internet, not adjusted to the type of information and the relationship.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>Signing the agreement only after disclosing the information.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>No contractual penalty or no reservation of additional damages.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>Failing to regulate what happens with the information after talks end.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003Cli>Discrepancies between the NDA and the later main contract — it is worth deciding which document prevails.\u003C\u002Fli>\u003C\u002Ful>\u003Cp>In cooperation with contractors running sole proprietorships, confidentiality clauses usually go into the main contract; care must then be taken that the whole does not resemble an employment relationship — the risk is described in the article on a \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fadvice\u002Fb2b-reclassified-as-employment\">contractor agreement reclassified as employment\u003C\u002Fa>.\u003C\u002Fp>\u003Ch2>How Good Balance can help\u003C\u002Fh2>\u003Cp>We prepare NDAs tailored to the industry and type of information — in Polish and in bilingual versions — and confidentiality clauses for contracts with counterparties and subcontractors. Details are on the \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fservices\u002Flegal\u002Fagreement-drafting\">contract drafting\u003C\u002Fa> page; for breach matters you are welcome to a \u003Ca href=\"\u002Fen\u002Fservices\u002Flegal\u002Fconsultation\">legal consultation\u003C\u002Fa>.\u003C\u002Fp>","2026-10-09"]