Legal Question in Intellectual Property in California

I am going to assume that you meant to ask what sort of intellectual property laws you should consider. I am assuming this because copyright law generally provide protection only to the following categories:

1. literary works

2. musical works, including any accompanying words

3. dramatic works, including any accompanying music

4. pantomimes and choreographic works

5. pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works

6. motion pictures and other audiovisual works

7. sound recordings

8. architectural works

So unless you are seeking to look into protecting the prototypes you created as a sculpture or other form of art, copyright is likely not the best place for you to seek protection.

In the alternative you should look into patents, and if you are working under a particular business name, you may want to trademark that mark.

In addition to figuring out what part of intellectual property law you can gain the most protection from, you should also look into how your relationship with the company is structured. If you are an independent contractor, then the default rule is usually the inventor or the author is the original owner, who can then transfer ownership via contract (so your independent contractor agreement may be controlling here). If you are an employee, unless otherwise contracted, the company will be the owner from the start.

I hope this short discussion is helpful to you. I highly recommend that you speak to an attorney to discussion your specific situation in further detail and review your contract with the company.

Kind regards,

Jim

email: [email protected]

phone: 424-229-2560