E2E partner Virtuoso Legal reveals the pitfalls of intellectual property

Elizabeth Ward, Founder and Principal of the intellectual property specialist Virtuoso Legal, on the power and importance of trusted IP advice early on in the creative process

Elizabeth Ward, Virtuoso Legal (Virtuoso Legal)

One of the most common questions we receive from clients is about employee or director-created intellectual property. With directors who started life as the company founders, they will often have created software, designs or brands they brought to life before the company was started. This can create quite a few problems in start-ups, especially where the creator wishes to move on.

In my career as an IP specialist, I’ve seen disputes over who created the database, the website, the logos and the inventions to name but a few. As always, some good advice early on can be not only helpful but save thousands of pounds further down the line.

It is good practice to ensure that founders assign over their IP to the company early on. The same applies for employees, who often create new ideas, inventions and designs at home and then bring them into work. If those are adopted by the employer, then again, they should be formally assigned into the company.

Please don’t assume that whatever your employee or director has created belongs to the company. It is always wise to have professionally drafted contracts to ensure the company doesn’t get into future disputes, and indeed passes all the due diligence tests for funding and for the sale of the company.

You can view the complete E2E Job Creation 100 track here