How can a NDA protect my valuable intellectual property?
Worried about someone stealing your valuable intellectual property when you have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars developing it? Maybe you’re thinking of commercializing it or forming a joint venture. In this video, I talk about how to protect your intellectual property with a non-disclosure or confidentiality agreement.
What is it, and how does it protect you?
If you have any questions about non-disclosure contracts reach out.
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
Ross Millen:
Hi. I had a client the other day who contacted me and said, "We're entering into some discussions about a potential new business venture. We've got some really great and very valuable intellectual property and we're talking to someone else about how we can commercialize this and maybe form a joint venture or a new business," and I said, "Well, have you got some sort of non-disclosure agreement or confidentiality agreement?" And there was silence. He said, "Well, what are you talking about?" I said, "Well, you don't want to give away if you've got secret information, confidential information that you've spent maybe hundreds of thousands of dollars developing. You don't just want to let someone else know all about it without having some contract with them."
So we prepared a non-disclosure agreement, and basically, all they say is that, "We've got confidential information. We're going to give it to you, but you've got to look after it. You've got to respect the fact that it's secret, confidential, only people who needs to know bases get to know about it," and there's all sorts of things like not copying it and protecting it, and if the discussions don't go anywhere, returning it all, destroying it all, and these obligations can last for a reasonable period of time.
So if you're dealing in any sort of business situation where you're negotiating or talking about a potential new development and you're sharing valuable information that belongs to you, you need a non-disclosure agreement or something like a confidentiality deed. Now, we can prepare these. We can also review them if you get them from another side. So remember, protect your valuable assets, your confidential information. Always have a non-disclosure agreement. I hope you find that useful. Remember, any questions, contact myself or anyone else at Millens. We're here to help. Thanks.
