6 Important Points to Note in Software Agreements (Part 1)

Source: Telugu One Comedy <www.teluguone.com>

One of the most interesting jokes that I have seen about the herculean task of software developers is illustrated in the above picture, yet the picture represents the dilemma of their work. That is why I have always emphasized that every software developer should take interest in learning the law (at least as it applies to them).

Are you a software developer and you are reading this piece? Below are 6 clauses that you must instruct your lawyer to note in preparing software agreements for your clients.

1.     Do not give 100% guarantee that nothing would go wrong with your software. You probably will agree with me that something sometimes go wrong at some point.  It is therefore important to have a balanced agreement with clauses that allows you and your client to share risk and responsibilities in a workable manner.

2.     Correction of certain errors may take time, sometimes, you might need to deploy entirely new codes or even substantially rewrite the software, so, do not agree to a fixed time within which to correct errors. The right thing to do is to provide in Agreement that your company will evaluate the extent of error and advice on the time frame within which the errors will be corrected.

3.     Save yourself the headache of litigation by asking your lawyer to add problem solving clauses. Most times, we lawyers place emphasis on dispute resolution clause instead of problem solving clause by which parties to an agreement are made to work as a team in resolving problems. One of the beautiful things about working as a team to resolve problems is that you create a teaming bond with your client and avoid unnecessary confrontations which eventually may lead you and your client to the court room.

4.     How would you feel, if your client identifies the staff that happened to be the brain behind the software and then lure him or her from your company? Terrible, I guess. Moreover, your team members may have access to the source code of the software- and that may be a top trade secret of your company. That is why you must have a clause against staff poaching by which your client agrees not to engage any of your staff for a period of time following the completion of the software.

5.     Beware of the clients that are always changing their software specifications. One way to address such tendency is to insert a clause for software specification so that any proposed variation that amounts to an added task can be paid for. 

6.     When you have done all you can to keep a relationship and it seems that it has headed for the walls, your best bet will be to resort to third party intervention (mediation, arbitration, litigation etc.). Bearing in mind the technical nature of your profession, it is important that you opt for a dispute management mechanism by which the dispute settlers have considerable knowledge in your profession, and that necessarily means that you make court litigation your last option.

Other than the above suggested clauses, there are standard clauses which your agreement should have. In essence, the points listed in this article are not exhaustive and the peculiarity of each client’s specification may differ, it is therefore important that you seek advice from an experienced legal practitioner.

7 Ways I.T. Professionals (and Others at Large) Can Protect their Ideas from Pirates

Years ago, people suffered from the menace of high robbery incidence, but these days, theft of intellectual materials is more rampant. There is therefore a need for owners of creative works to know how they can protect their works from intellectual thieves (otherwise known as pirates).

Before more, let me establish one fact straight away- an idea is worthless until expressed in a tangible form. That is why this article focuses on what you should take cognizance of in the process of turning your idea to a finished worked.

I pitched on I.T. professionals in this article because theirs is the most difficult to handle. For one, the internet is the most unregulated society and that is where I.T. professionals showcase their works. Secondly, when those works get copied by pirates, millions are lost.

I do not guarantee that your work will not be pirated if you follow the suggestions in this article, but I assure that you will be placed in a better position to establish your ownership and defend your claims against any pirate.

Briefly stated below are seven things you can do to establish the ownership of your works and thereby prevent them from being pirated:

 

• If you are a software developer or you are into programming and coding, embed your name in computer codes that you generate so that if you need to prove ownership, you are not left stammering.

•  Keep the master copy (initial design) of your work. If you have a lawyer, seek his or her counsel for safe custody.

•  If you have support team that is working with you on the task of creating the work, ensure that they sign an agreement which recognizes you or your company as the owner of the work to be invented. Truth be told, it is easier to get your support team to sign such agreement at an early stage than when your work starts to attract millions of hard currencies.  

• Ensure that your support team signs confidentiality agreement so that they are under legal obligation to keep your apparatus secret especially when they choose to move on.  

• When you launch your invented work, remember to mention that the work is your copyright. Simple way to do this is to use the symbol “©” with your name or that of your company and the year the work was invented. For example “©Eyitayo Ogunyemi 2017”.

• Register your ownership of the work with relevant government agency. While this is not what primarily gives you ownership right, it gives a better assurance that the work is yours.  

• Imprint your trademark in the finished work. This makes it easier to establish your ownership in case of dispute. Remember however to first register your trademark with the relevant government agency.

 

After you have established your ownership of the work following the highlighted steps, you can give license to people to use the work in exchange for a token or even figure out other ways to generate money from the use of the work.

Most importantly, do not release your work to the public without first protecting your ownership of it one way or the other.

Eyitayo Ogunyemi