Keeping Secrets: It’s the queso! It’s also the law.

A U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals opinion dealt a setback to the region’s undisputed king of Latino cheese--Industry-based Cacique Inc.--but it came as a relief to competitor Marquez Bros. International of San Jose.

Cacique is suing Massachusetts-based Robert Reiser & Co. for selling a cheese extruder to Marquez Bros. that allowed it to form fresh white cheese cakes that Cacique says are suspiciously similar to its own. Cacique argued that it is entitled to royalties on profit made at its expense, and sought detailed sales information from Marquez Bros. to prove its point. When Marquez Bros. refused to disclose the information, the district judge held the company in contempt. It was that decision that the appellate court overturned Tuesday, ruling that Marquez Bros. does not have to share the information.

Cacique, which leads the fast-growing Latino cheese industry with $90 million in annual sales, is known for vigilantly protecting its trade secrets. Cacique attorney Allan Browne said the company still expects to recover “millions of dollars for theft of this trade secret” from Robert Reiser, but will have to move forward without the Marquez Bros. sales data.

“We are not disheartened,” he said. Meanwhile, Marquez Bros. attorney Robert Danneskiold said he was “very pleased” with the decision.

While Marquez Bros. is not named in the suit, founder Juan Marquez was willing to risk a contempt-of-court citation rather than disclose trade secrets to his leading competitor, Danneskiold said. Cacique sued Marquez Bros. over the issue in state court in 1995 but voluntarily dismissed its complaint before filing against Robert Reiser in federal court.