Risk Prevention Strategies: Ownership of Employee-Developed Inventions and Intellectual Property
On September 15, 2023, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law Senate Bill 5640, which adds Section 203-f to the New York Labor Law. Section 203-f creates statutory limitations on an employer's use of invention...more
New York state recently amended Labor Law Section 203-f, codifying a hurdle for employers who seek to claim ownership over an employee's inventions. The law, which is similar to laws enacted in other states[1], has three...more
A recently enacted New York State law that took effect immediately restricts employers’ use of employment agreements which require that employees assign to their employer rights to inventions that were created by the employee...more
In recent weeks, New York enacted various employment laws that provide additional protections for New York employees. After reviewing the below, which summarizes the new laws in descending order of effective date, employers...more
On September 15, 2023, New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed into law a new section of the New York Labor Law limiting the assignment of inventions by employees to their employers. Specifically, Section 203-f of the Labor Law...more
New York state lawmakers passed a flurry of employment-related bills in the final weeks of the legislative session. The bills – which now head to Governor Hochul’s desk for consideration – aim to provide workers in the state...more
In recent years, there has been a shift across the U.S. to restrict the use of non-compete agreements. In fact, on January 5, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) proposed a new rule that would effectively ban the use...more
Intellectual property assets are the lifeblood of many businesses today. No employer wants to see those assets walk out the door when an employee leaves. Employee invention assignment agreements are one crucial tool for...more
Federal Circuit Summaries - Before Newman, O’Malley, and Reyna. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Summary: A co-inventor did not transfer ownership interests in a...more
U.S. patent law elevates the importance of “the inventor” to an extent unseen in the rest of the world. Unlike many other countries, ownership of patent applications in the United States initially vests in the inventors...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit is currently considering a petition for en banc rehearing of the “automatic patent assignment” rule announced in the Court’s 1991 decision in FilmTec Corp. v. Allied-Signal,...more
This season’s finale of Silicon Valley provided Richard with only the briefest moment of victory before he once again faces losing Pied Piper. First, the arbitrator rules that because Richard used a Hooli computer while...more
With the days of patent and copyrights applying mainly to tangible objects being long gone, data and patent rights are becoming more important than ever. Now, every process, software, procedure, and other intellectual...more
Originally published in MidlandsBiz.com on December 18, 2012. In its most significant employment law decision of 2012, Milliken & Co. v. Morin, the South Carolina Supreme Court addressed the enforceability of provisions...more