Legal Question in Technology Law in Texas
Years ago, as an employee, I convienced my then boss we needed a website. He reluctantly agreed. I thought of the name, registered and paid for it. I've renewed it all these years. We have since separated. Am I required to transfer ownership of the domain to him?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Yes. What you did was as an employee and the employer owns the rights to it. You would, however, have a right to reimbursement for your expenses and time since separation. During employment your were compensated by your salary. However, your leverage is your status as domain registrant, so you will want to drag your feet on the ownership transfer until you are assured of reimbursement. If this is a contentious situation, you should use a lawyer so the employer does not try to hassle you. Once you have a lawyer, the employer must contact you through the lawyer, which takes you out of the loop and helps prevent you getting hassled. If you are contacted when represented you simply tell them to talk to your lawyer and give them the lawyer's contact information. That should get you reimbursed, as it seldom makes economic sense for the employer to hire an attorney and litigate over something like this.
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