dan_g8
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| posted on 1/2/11 at 09:42 PM |
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any programmers about? copy right question.
hi guys im after a bit of advice,
I currently work as a CAD technician and do a bit of VBA programming when a project needs it/when there is no work/ in my own time. My contract/ job
role has nothing to do with programming its just something that i do to help the office out.
There has been alot of petty things going on (one example is that i attended a funeral yesterday for my nan and the person who signed it off has ended
up in a load of grief! im sorry but family come first and i gave them over a weeks notice so there shouldnt be a problem),any way i wont go into it
all; i want to remove my tools from the office computers but who has the copy right of the tools? i have made some in my own time and some at work.
would the company own the tools that i have developed when i was there?
Thanks
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stevebubs
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| posted on 1/2/11 at 09:58 PM |
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Not a lawyer, but have working in/around IT development for quite a while...
Fine line here...if it was developed on their equipment, they can lay certain claims against it.
Also depends on your contract - is there anything in there about IPR whilst in their employ?
Pragmatic question - presumably you want to remove the tools/code so you have copies to "refer to" if you leave? Or is it more to stick it
to them....If the former then it's normally just done on the QT. If the latter, then if they find you've deliberately removed code/tools
they rely on then it could get complicated in a nasty sense...
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dan_g8
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| posted on 1/2/11 at 10:21 PM |
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my contract has nothing about IPR that i am aware of.
I dont realy need copies of them as the tools were started at work and completed at home in my own time. It was more to "stick it to them"
Im guessing that im on dodgy grounds, they may be my tools but as they have been created/started on their computers they are technically theirs?
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tegwin
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| posted on 1/2/11 at 10:47 PM |
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It is a very grey area and one which, I suspect, your employer would win if taken to court...
I had a similar issue at a previous employer, I simply altered the code slightly so that, without my input (on an expensive contract rate) their
systems would fall apart......... bet they wish they gave me that payrise now!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Would the last person who leaves the country please switch off the lights and close the door!
www.verticalhorizonsmedia.tv
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designer
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| posted on 1/2/11 at 11:47 PM |
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Anything devised/invented/created while employed belongs to the employer.
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David Jenkins
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| posted on 2/2/11 at 09:12 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by designer
Anything devised/invented/created while employed belongs to the employer.
That would be the way I'd see it too... but it is a grey area.
If you write code for a related product, in their time and/or on their equipment, then it's most likely their IP. If you write code for
something totally unrelated to work, at home and in your own time, then it's yours.
...but I'm no lawyer!
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hughpinder
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| posted on 2/2/11 at 09:27 AM |
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If what you do create a serious problem for them, such that they decide its worth going to court, you will find the court relys on documentary
evidence as to who 'owns' the software (I did my jury service a couple of years ago - if it isnt writtendown it didnt happen). Do you have
any evidence that it was created at home? The current install shows they have the software on their system. It will be up to you to prove otherwise.
Your reputation may be dragged through the mud, maybe only locally, but that could still be a problem.
I'd mod the scripts/codes so that it prints 'tool provided by <your name>' every time they display the screen or use it to
print.
Regards
Hugh
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scudderfish
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| posted on 2/2/11 at 09:29 AM |
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Do you think you can take any drawings or documents you wrote with you? What makes software special?
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MikeRJ
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| posted on 2/2/11 at 09:36 AM |
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If something was created in your own time, at your own home and the software doesn't incorporate any of the companies IP then they would have a
hard time claiming any copyright. Otherwise it's almost certainly theirs.
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r1_pete
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| posted on 2/2/11 at 11:00 AM |
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Claim there is a bug, which has resulted in erroneous behaviour, so you have removed them until you have time to debug and fix them.
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tweek
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| posted on 2/2/11 at 07:31 PM |
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Definitely check your contract thoroughly, usually there would be a specific Intellectual Property section to cover all of this, there is in mine, my
company owns everything I produce while working for them.
If there isn't, all bets are off.
Cheers,
John
"oh dear..." said god,
"I hadn't thought of that"
and promptly vanishes in a puff of logic
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iank
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| posted on 2/2/11 at 08:11 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by MikeRJ
If something was created in your own time, at your own home and the software doesn't incorporate any of the companies IP then they would have a
hard time claiming any copyright. Otherwise it's almost certainly theirs.
Yes, though years ago I did hear about a company who tried to claim ownership on a novel one of their employees wrote in their own time (on their own
computer), they lost since it wasn't even slightly work related.
Contracts used to say they owned anything you did while employed belonged the them, not seen one like that for years presumably due to the above case.
If it were true there would be some pretty ugly open source battles.
If it's in the same area as the companies products then it's a really grey area and you'd probably lose.
In the OP's case I'd say just ignore the tools (keep a copy if you want) and get a job at a better company if you can.
--
Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level, then beat you with experience.
Anonymous
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