
Ask HN: How to talk to my employer about side projects and IP? - aaronmalone
Hi HN,<p>I work in software development at a large retail company and would like to pursue a side project that may one day evolve into a business of its own. Unfortunately, my employment contract says that my employer owns anything that I work on while in their employ. I&#x27;d like to pursue some kind of change in my employment agreement, so that I can work on this side project without worrying about potential complications if it ever becomes successful.<p>FWIW, my side project is a SAAS product that is unrelated to the core business of my employer and I don&#x27;t think my employer would ever try to exercise its rights over my work. But I want to avoid any issues I might have if I try to bring on investors down the road or even sell the company.<p>How should I go about having this conversation with my employer?
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greenyoda
Talk to a lawyer first and find out what your rights are under law (in the
U.S., laws vary from state to state) and whether the IP clauses in your
contract are enforceable. If your side project ends up being successful, there
may be a lot of money at stake here, so a consultation with a lawyer would be
well worth the expense.

Of course, the best result is that you come to a friendly agreement with your
employer and not have to go to court to litigate ownership of your work. If,
after talking to the lawyer, you find your employer is hostile to the idea,
you might want to consider looking for a job with a more enlightened company.

If you do come to an agreement with your employer, you should probably get it
in writing (e.g., as a signed amendment to your terms of employment).
Otherwise, they could come back in a few years and claim the agreement never
happened. Again, this is something your lawyer can help you with.

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joojia
Your employer doesn't own you outside work hours

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greenyoda
They may not own you, but they may own your _work_ if you use your company
laptop, or if your product uses their trade secrets, or if you signed an
enforceable contract agreeing that they own your work. There are many legal
complications in this area.

