We are living in a world of innovation such that an initially small idea outgrows their boundary to go ahead to change a community. As a small business, if you ever formulate a formula, developed a product, or are working on an idea you need to formerly protect it not just from the outside world, but also from the very people helping you to work on it. The easiest way to guard your intellectual property right is through a nondisclosure agreement (NDA).

What’s NDA Intellectual Property

An NDA is a legal contract between two parties with one party agreeing to share sensitive information for a specific purpose on the condition that the other party agrees not to disclose that information to anyone else.

Intellectual property (IP), on the other hand, is the creations of the mind by a business. Such property includes a product, a formula, or even an idea. If your business owns an intellectual property right, the business has exclusive rights to that property such that no one else can copy or reuse it without your business’ permission.

Why an NDA is essential for your business

1. An NDA helps you protect unpatentable intellectual property.

Intellectual property is your business’ greatest asset. If someone shares your business secrets with your competition, your competitors may not only overrun you, but you may lose business as well. Yet you can’t patent your business secrets, can you? Such secrets can only be protected by an intellectual property confidentiality agreement, clearly stating that they shall never share any of your business secrets.

2. Protect unfiled patent rights

You may not want to share your secrets of intellectual property, but there instances when you have to do it as a necessary “evil.” For example, you may need funding, and so you have to come up with a business plan in which you may share some confidential, proprietary information.

Alternatively, your business may need to share its intellectual property information with others for the sole purpose of further developing it. For example, you have come with an idea of an app that would solve a specific problem. But because you are not an app developer, so, you contract another firm to do it.

In all these cases, you may reveal unpatented information, but an NDA candidly guards this information. A contract for intellectual property will ensure that the app developers don’t share the details of your new product or the even claim its ownership

3. Protect property developed by partners or employees.

The NDA may also come in handy when handling intellectual property developed by your partners or employees. The agreement should state that all intellectual property developed by them belongs solely to the company. Ideally, this would protect the business of the company should that partner or employee leave.

All the same, you must sufficiently compensate those who develop any intellectual property before they handover the rights to the company. You can always talk to intellectual property attorneys to guide you on that.

It is always advisable to patent your innovative products. But in cases where such products do not qualify, you can still use intellectual property NDA. Speak with a patent attorney to evaluate your options whenever necessary.