QUESTION
Employment agreement states that company owns all IP related to company business. Want to use non-proprietary method outside work hours. Any issues?
Asked on Mar 24th, 2012 on Intellectual Property - Texas
More details to this question:
Work for a small tech company. In my employment agreement it says that company owns all IP in any way related to company business, developed outside work hours or not, but also acknowledges deferment to Texas state law. Want to use non-proprietary analysis skills I developed while working there to set up an LLC and website in an unrelated business sector after work hours. Do I need to inform the company or get a release of some kind?
2 ANSWERS
While you may want to inform the company of your plans (and it would be wise for you to do so), based on the limited information that you have provided, it does not seem that you are using any of the company's intellectual property if all you are using that relates to the company is truly non-proprietary analysis skills.
Answered on Apr 13th, 2012 at 3:13 PM
You are getting into the area where IP law and trade secretlaw come into play. I am not a TX lawyer, so I cannot answer as far as TX law. However, your state has a law regarding what is trade secret information for your employer. I am guessing that the trade secret information is included in the contracts definition of IP. If what you are taking is specific trade secret information - you can't do that. If what you are using is general skills that are in your toolbox of skills from being exposed to the job - you can take that.
You may want to see a lawyer to specifically discuss the parameters of your non-proprietary analysis skills with a lawyer if you want to be exactly sure you are not doing anything wrong. It is possible for an analysis method to be a trade secret.
Answered on Apr 02nd, 2012 at 3:34 PM