Legal Question in Business Law in Texas
My friend is starting up a business, he had me assist him over the past 3 months with various things. Over that time he came up with a very rough concept for a product. The concept was entirely his, however over the period of the 3 months he and I evolved the idea into a patent worthy product. After meeting with a patent attorney and having a patent search done, we are moving forward with a provisional patent. A few of the key elements were directly my ideas while evolving the product. He is wanting me to now sign over all the rights to the patent. He has told me while we are hand making this product he will pay me $20 per item sold, for 3 months. After that he is wanting me to work for him for a little over $15/hour. Is it stupid of me to sign away my rights to this product? Should I be asking for any type of ownership in the company? Considering he has been the only one investing any money in this.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Dear almost Inventor
You need to retain an intellectual property lawyer to assist you with this issue. It cannot be answered by email. There are both legal questions involved (any ownership rights you might have in the product and whether your assistance was a work for hire participation) and business issues involved (is the 3 months and work arrangement sufficient compensation for your assistance).
For this one, hands on help is needed.
TDW
Related Questions & Answers
-
I am a business onwer, i rent computers and printers; However rented those things... Asked 10/16/12, 8:58 am in United States Texas Business Law
-
I will preface this question with a short story about the current situation. My... Asked 10/04/12, 3:14 pm in United States Texas Business Law
-
My partner and I are not getting along so I want to sell the business . Found a... Asked 9/30/12, 7:43 pm in United States Texas Business Law
-
Does a contract labor employer have the right to read a contractors emails? Asked 9/30/12, 9:40 am in United States Texas Business Law
-
My name is John F. I just signed up for an AT&T Cell Phone Family plan with 700... Asked 9/28/12, 8:08 am in United States Texas Business Law