patents trade secrets_eng_graves_cleantech_open_academy_2012
TRANSCRIPT
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Patents and Trade Secrets for Early-Stage Clean Tech Ventures
Peter EngCharles T. Graves
June 22, 2012
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2 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Why Care About Intellectual Property and Licensing?
• Secure Rights / BuildValue
• Avoid Misappropriation / Infringement
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3 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Intellectual Property Life Cycle
M&A/Exit!
University/Former
Employer
AdditionalIn-Licenses/Acquisitions
Products/Services
Out-Licenses
Founders(Assignment)
Employees(Invent. Discl./Confid. Agts.)
The Enterprise
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4 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Issues for Founding Team
• Conflict with Rights of Former Employers
• Assignment of Founders’ Rights into the Company
• Other Contributors?
• Third Party Rights
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5 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Categories of Intellectual Property
• Trade Secrets
• Trademarks
• Patents
• Copyrights
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6 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Trade Secrets
• Protect Secret Information• Avoid Allegations of Misuse• Take Care When Hiring• Examples:
– Source Code– Manufacturing Process– Customer Lists– Product Roadmap
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7 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Trade Secrets: Maintenance of Secrecy
• Marking Documents
• Security Procedures – Sign-in, Badges, Restricted Visitor Access, Employee Exit Interviews
• Agreements
• Data Security
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8 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Trade Secrets: Best Practices
• Disclosure May Kill the Trade Secret• Reverse Engineering and Independent Development• General Knowledge and Skills of Employees - Cannot be
Owned
• Risks: Injunctions and Damages• Create a Policy for Employee Hiring and Departures
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9 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Patents: Subject Matter
• Apparatus
• Design Patents
• Business Methods A B
• Process
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10 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Patents: How Obtained
• File Application with Patent Office (PTO)
• Timeliness/Filing Date
• Patentability Requirements, E.g.:– Novelty – Nonobviousness – Description
PTO
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11 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Patents: Summary of Deadlines
U.S. Statutory Bars No Patent, if More Than One Year Prior to Filing Date:
• Patented
• Printed Publication
• Public Use
• On Sale
Most Other Countries: Absolute novelty – file before invention becoming public. No grace period. Use your US filing date for priority if file within 1 year.
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12 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Patent Tradeoffs
• Requires Application (High Cost)
• Right to Exclude/Not Right to Practice
• May Cover General Methods
• Independent Development May Infringe
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13 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Government Generally Does Not Require Ownership of Intellectual Property Rights
Bayh-Dole ActApplies to broad categories of Government funding agreements.Funding recipient generally has the ability to retain title to patent rights.
• Waiver Requirement for Ownership– Small businesses can retain ownership– Large businesses need a waiver
• Disclosure and Filing Requirements • Government’s Retained Rights - License back to practice “for or
on behalf of the United States.” Continued…
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14 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Government Generally Does Not Require Ownership of Intellectual Property Rights (cont’d)
Bayh-Dole Act (continued)
• Preference for American Industry – but can be waived.
• “March-in Rights”– Government has never exercised.
• Subcontractor Title Retention - Subcontractor’s inventions vest in the subcontractor (to the exclusion of the funding recipient); can be negotiated.
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15 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Licensing
• Grounded in the Concept of Intellectual Property as an “Exclusive Right”
• What are the Licensed Rights (e.g., patents, copyrighted works, etc.)?
• What are the Licensed Products/Activities?
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16 Cleantech Open Confidential Information – All Rights Reserved
Other Negotiated Terms
• Exclusivity
• Royalties
• Ownership
• Term
• Commercial Terms: Supply, Support, etc.
• Other
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Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati650 Page Mill Rd
Palo Alto, CA 94301-1050T: 650-493-9300F: 650-493-6811
w: www.wsgr.comCharles T. Graves Peter Eng
T: 415-947-2109 T: 650-320-4847E: [email protected] E: [email protected]