What was the primary issue in the Al Minor Associates vs. Martin case?

The primary issue in the Al Minor Associates vs. Martin case centered on the act of Martin memorizing a customer list belonging to Al Minor Associates (AMA). This case brought to light important considerations regarding trade secrets and the protection of proprietary information.

In this situation, the court had to address whether the act of memorizing a customer list constituted misappropriation of a trade secret, even though Martin did not physically take any documents from the company. Courts recognize that information such as customer lists can qualify as trade secrets if they derive independent economic value from not being generally known and are subject to reasonable efforts to maintain their secrecy. By memorizing this list, Martin was deemed to have utilized information that was confidential and valuable to AMA without authorization, leading to a ruling that favored AMA's position on the protection of its trade secrets.