NDA in Norway: Template, Key Clauses and Local Law (2026)

What an NDA is and how it works in Norway A non-disclosure agreement, or NDA (taushetserklaering or konfidensialitetsavtale), is a contract in which one or both parties promise to keep certain information confidential and to use it only for an agreed purpose. Businesses sign NDAs before sharing plans with investors, data with suppliers, or technical details with partners. In Norway an NDA is an ordinary contract under general contract law, and it is enforceable and valid when signed electronically. What makes Norway distinctive is that confidentiality is backed by a dedicated statute. The Trade Secrets Act (lov om forretningshemmeligheter) entered into force on 1 January 2021 and implements the EU Trade Secrets Directive 2016/943 through the EEA Agreement. Before it, protection came from scattered rules in the Marketing Control Act and the Criminal Code. The Act now defines a trade secret and gives the holder clear remedies, including injunctions and damages, independent of any contract. An NDA layers contractual certainty on top of that statutory protection. This page is general information, not legal advice. ## A one-way and mutual NDA template you can adapt ```

NON-DISCLOSURE AGREEMENT Date: [date] Discloser: [name, organisation number, address] Recipient: [name, organisation number, address] [For mutual NDAs, each party is both Discloser and Recipient.] 1. PURPOSE The parties wish to [describe the purpose, for example evaluate a possible investment, supply or partnership] (the "Purpose"). 2. CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION "Confidential Information" means information disclosed by one party to the other that is marked confidential or that a reasonable person would treat as confidential, in any form, including trade secrets as defined in the Trade Secrets Act. 3. OBLIGATIONS The Recipient keeps Confidential Information secret, uses it only for the Purpose, discloses it only to personnel with a need to know who are bound by equivalent obligations, and protects it with reasonable measures. 4. EXCLUSIONS The obligations do not apply to information that is or becomes public without fault, was already lawfully known, is lawfully received from a third party, or is independently developed. 5. REQUIRED DISCLOSURE If law or a public authority requires disclosure, the Recipient may disclose the minimum necessary and, where lawful, informs the Discloser. 6. DATA PROTECTION Where Confidential Information includes personal data, the parties comply with the GDPR and the Personal Data Act. 7. RETURN OR DESTRUCTION On request or at the end of the term, the Recipient returns or destroys Confidential Information and confirms it. 8. TERM This agreement runs for [period]; confidentiality obligations continue for [period] after it ends. 9. REMEDIES AND LAW The Discloser may seek an injunction and other remedies, including those under the Trade Secrets Act. This agreement is governed by Norwegian law. Signed: Discloser ____________ Recipient ____________ Date ______

- **No survival period.** If confidentiality ends when the agreement ends, the protection is hollow; set a survival period that matches the sensitivity of the information.
- **Ignoring the Trade Secrets Act.** Treating all confidential information the same misses the extra statutory protection available for genuine trade secrets, and the chance to reference it in the definition.
- **Overlooking personal data.** If the information includes personal data, the GDPR and the Personal Data Act apply on top of the NDA, and a data processing agreement may be needed.
- **One-way when it should be mutual.** If both sides will share sensitive information, a mutual NDA is fairer and quicker to agree than two competing one-way documents. ## Keeping an NDA consistent across a relationship An NDA is usually the first of several documents. It is followed by a term sheet, a service agreement or a shareholders agreement, and the confidentiality promises must stay consistent across all of them. Signing one NDA is simple; tracking who signed what version and which obligations are still live across many deals is the real work. Drafting from a sound template, checking that the definition and survival period fit the information and line up with the Trade Secrets Act, editing a term in plain language, and holding every signed version with its date is the kind of work an AI contract workspace can keep in one place, tuned to how your company contracts. [Adira](https://adiralaw.com) is built around that single workspace idea. Its depth today is in Indian law, with other jurisdictions including Norway on the roadmap, so for a Norwegian NDA the template above and local advice remain your guide. The point worth taking is that confidentiality is easier to enforce when drafting, review and version history live together.