copyright and employment agreement

copyright and employment agreement

jbs	5/14/2004 7:23:10 PM
I work for an employer who makes all employees sign an an agreement that anything they copyright upto 1 year after leaving their employment belongs to the company. Will this hold up in court ? Even if it does not and if you can show records that you developed something that does not infringe on their intellectual property after leaving the company can they use the agreement to tie you up in legal proceedings ?



Stan Brown	5/17/2004 7:16:39 AM
"jbs" <jbsmi04@earthlink.net> wrote in misc.legal.moderated: I work for an employer who makes all employees sign an an agreement that anything they copyright upto 1 year after leaving their employment belongs to the company. Will this hold up in court ? Maybe -- but if you disagree with something it is foolish to sign it hoping that later you'll be able to get it thrown out. Even if it does not and if you can show records that you developed something that does not infringe on their intellectual property after leaving the company can they use the agreement to tie you up in legal proceedings ? Yes. Almost certainly they have more money and more time to devotee to the matter than you. -- If you e-mail me from a fake address, your fingers will drop off. I am not a lawyer; this is not legal advice. When you read anything legal on the net, always verify it on your own, in light of your particular circumstances. You may also need to consult a lawyer. Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems, Cortland County, New York, USA http://OakRoadSystems.com



Gerald Clough	5/17/2004 7:16:54 AM
jbs wrote: I work for an employer who makes all employees sign an an agreement that anything they copyright upto 1 year after leaving their employment belongs to the company. Will this hold up in court ? Even if it does not and if you can show records that you developed something that does not infringe on their intellectual property after leaving the company can they use the agreement to tie you up in legal proceedings ? You want a real lawyer, but if the language is as simple as that, it sounds to me like it's impossible to enforce, because it's impossible for you to avoid generating copyrights. Your copyright is created as soon as you create a writing or other applicable property. So, if you write a poem or make a photograph, you've acquired copyright. You can hardly avoid it, and it's absurd to presume they owned the rights to your photos of your vacation to the Grand Canyon. But anybody can "tie your up in legal proceedings", if they want to, even with an absurd claim. -- Gerald Clough "Nothing has any value, unless you know you can give it up."



"Richard"	5/17/2004 7:17:00 AM
jbs wrote: I work for an employer who makes all employees sign an an agreement that anything they copyright upto 1 year after leaving their employment belongs to the company. Will this hold up in court ? Even if it does not and if you can show records that you developed something that does not infringe on their intellectual property after leaving the company can they use the agreement to tie you up in legal proceedings ? After employment will most likely not be legal. Specially when the word "anything" is applied to the agreement. Suppose you write a book in that year and it becomes a best seller and turned into a movie. Now your former employer turns around and claim they own the copyright simply because you signed the agreement. I believe the court would say they do not. The only items they can lay claim to are those that you develop FOR the company, on company time. I think many companies use these thing purely as scare tactics. I doubt if the agreement would hold up under the pressure of a court. If you can, take a copy of that agreement to a copyright attorney and let them give you a more professional review of it.



jfc@mit.edu (John F. Carr)	5/17/2004 7:17:09 AM
In article <u4laa0d33gjm7ig1rsrppafs7s7q33itrd@4ax.com>, jbs <jbsmi04@earthlink.net> wrote: I work for an employer who makes all employees sign an an agreement that anything they copyright upto 1 year after leaving their employment belongs to the company. Will this hold up in court ? It would be helpful to specify a state. California law specifically says that you own what you do on your own time that is not related to company business. When I worked for a California company in Massachusetts the employment contract referenced this law. Does the contract contain a qualification like "...that may be used in the business of the company"? Some contracts include that language to make it clear that, for example, this usenet article is not owned by my former employer. On the other hand I know people who have been asked to sign contracts that read literally would prohibit them from working in the software business for a year or two. Even if it does not and if you can show records that you developed something that does not infringe on their intellectual property after leaving the company can they use the agreement to tie you up in legal proceedings ? Yes, but I think in practice if you don't invite trouble you won't find any. How would your ex-employer know to come after you? -- John Carr (jfc@mit.edu)



"Stuart O. Bronstein"	5/18/2004 3:48:38 PM
Gerald Clough <firstinitiallastname@texas.net> wrote: jbs wrote: You want a real lawyer, but if the language is as simple as that, it sounds to me like it's impossible to enforce, because it's impossible for you to avoid generating copyrights. Your copyright is created as soon as you create a writing or other applicable property. So, if you write a poem or make a photograph, you've acquired copyright. You can hardly avoid it, and it's absurd to presume they owned the rights to your photos of your vacation to the Grand Canyon. Ah, but just because something is unreasonable doesn't mean it's unenforceable, particularly in a business context. Stu

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