Sunday, December 2, 2012

Protecting Your Rights When Selling Your Ideas


Lots of people have great and profitable ideas but lack the capability or the resources to get them to the market. These inventors often look for companies to help them manufacture or sell their invention. If you have a very profitable and very unique idea or invention but does not have the money to have it patented before selling it to a company, you may want to secure an intellectual property protection by asking that company to sign a "nondisclosure agreement" to make sure they'll not steal your ideas or your invention.

You may also want to hire an experienced lawyer to help you draft it. Generally, these agreements provide monetary penalties if the parties failed to comply with the conditions or are proved to have breached the contract. You may want to avoid imposing very high penalties that no companies will be willing to sign it.

Without proper intellectual property protection, winning a claim in a district court is very difficult. If someone copied your ideas or invention you may want to hire an IP lawyer to assess the merits of the case. If a company copied your product including the packing to a certain point that it creates confusion to the buying public, you might have a great chance of winning the case. This is the reason why you need to have the necessary intellectual property protection for your invention.

However, some companies are clever enough to modify your design, enough to avoid any possible legal issues. And you must keep in mind that a full lawsuit in any court can be very taxing and very expensive. In most cases, your lawyer first, through a demand letter (cease-and-desist letter) asking the offending company to stop any further manufacturing and sale of the contested product and possibly pay for damages. If the parties fail to arrive in a consensus, a lawsuit usually follows.

The lawsuit can cost you thousands of dollars though out the litigation process and can take so much time from your business. There is also no guarantee that you'll win the case. You also have to prove in court that your business severely suffered from the alleged product infringement

In the long run, the best way to protect your ideas or invention is by being very cautious on whom you disclose your ideas and getting the right intellectual property protection for your invention. You may also want to get some referrals before finally sharing your ideas to anyone.

Benefits of Understanding the Value of Your IP   Starting Your Career As An Intellectual Property Lawyer   Do You Need a Lawyer to Respond to a UDRP?   What Is the Protection of Business Names Under Intellectual Property Law?   Hire Patent and Trademark Attorney to Accelerate the IPR Procedure   Every Innovative Irish Idea Deserves to Be Protected Correctly in Law   



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