In our experience, most people and companies pursuing ventures don’t own the IP that they think they own.
Of course this IP is usually critical to your venture’s prospects of success (including in terms of its ability to attract much needed capital, as investors won’t come near you if your IP-ownership situation is unclear).
Securing the IP clearly and early also helps you maintain critical competitive advantages in the marketplace, and helps reduce the risk of people trying to get a piece of your success (after years of your hard work, not theirs) that you don’t think they deserve.
The situation here is critical if you haven’t signed any documents that clearly serve to ensure that you own the IP you think you own.
But what if you have already signed something, like an assignment document or a contractor’s document that deals with IP? In our experience most documents (even sometimes those prepared by a venture’s lawyers, and especially those sourced online) do not adequately address the issues here. The risk is even more critical when you have accepted terms prepared by lawyers who acted for the other side (for example, when you accept a service provider’s standard terms).
We can have a quick look at documents you’ve signed (or terms you’ve accepted without signing) in the past and let you know if they look like they’re exposing you to serious risks. We can do this at no cost to you, so don’t hesitate to get in touch.
We have experience acting for leading innovative organisations, and have developed a premium quality IP Assignment document that aims to ensure that your venture owns the IP you intend it to own. The quality of the document will impress upon future investors that the management team is on the ball when it comes to addressing critical issues (like securing IP) and sourcing premium quality advice and documents.
We are happy to provide our document at a fixed cost, in finalised form (not in draft form seeking further instructions). The document will be tailored to the specific circumstances of your venture.
Our document comes at a fraction of the cost of seeking to un-do the damage that may otherwise be caused if you proceeded without the protections in the document. And remember, sometimes it may not even be possible to un-do such damage, so getting these issues right from the outset is the best (and cheapest) way to proceed.
Please email us at assignment@saljar.com or call us on 1300 882 643 to discuss whether our IP assignment deed is needed (it may not be) or if you’d like us to have a quick look – at no cost to you – at existing terms you’ve accepted. We’re happy to discuss all these issues at no cost to you, so don’t hesitate to get in touch.