Intellectual Property Infringement
I and a friend are independent contractors (software development) where we have worked on various IT projects for a large/national company (Company A). We have had a relationship with this company for over 5 years and are now very knowledgeable about their industry.
We are thinking of building an application to service this industry to promote/sell (this would include to Company A's competitors). This application would be generic enough to service this industry vertical without giving away any of Company A's trade secrets.
However, we are still concerned that Company A may consider this an infringement on their intellectual property. So, what exactly would be the definition of intellectual property?
Re: Intellectual Property Infringement
I agree with Ms. Cowin; however, there is an aspect of your facts that isn't clearly part of the concern you identified (the definition of IP) and which concerns me.
Specifically, you note that you would be careful not to GIVE AWAY any of Company A's trade secrets. You did not, however, ask about another problem: Will you PROFIT FROM Company A's trade secrets even though you don't disclose them to third parties?
I'd suggest that you do a little research on your own into what is forbidden and what the harmed party's remedies are under the California version of the Uniform Trade Secrets Act, Civil Code sections 3426 to 3426.11. You can probably find the Act on line and its language is pretty easy for intelligent laypersons to understand (although a full appreciation of how it's applied in court is a research attorney's job) and additional research should turn up Google references to cases, annotations and discussions.
Re: Intellectual Property Infringement
I agree with Ms. Cowin; however, there is an aspect of your facts that isn't clearly part of the concern you identified (the definition of IP) and which concerns me.
Specifically, you note that you would be careful not to GIVE AWAY any of Company A's trade secrets. You did not, however, ask about another problem: Will you PROFIT FROM Company A's trade secrets even though you don't disclose them to third parties?
I'd suggest that you do a little research on your own into what is forbidden and what the harmed party's remedies are under the California version of the Uniform Trade Secrets Act, Civil Code sections 3426 to 3426.11. You can probably find the Act on line and its language is pretty easy for intelligent laypersons to understand (although a full appreciation of how it's applied in court is a research attorney's job) and additional research should turn up Google references to cases, annotations and discussions.
