07.31.07
Downside of NDAs
It’s understandable that if you have a great idea or new product that you want to be protective of it and are going to want to patent it. That’s why Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) have always been popular in business. Unfortunately, they may not be as effective as you think.
Potential problems with NDAs include:
- protection is too broad – if you are not specific enough in determining what is and isn’t considered “top secret” or “confidential”, the NDA is worthless if it comes to litigating.
- high ”oops” factor - if you inadvertently spill the beans to a friend or a manufacturer about your idea or product, you have, in essence, performed a public disclosure and can void any future protection available.
- ticking time bomb – generally you have one year to file for a patent after your first public disclosure. Your clock doesn’t start ticking if you make the party to whom the information was disclosed sign an NDA, but it does start ticking if the NDA is invalid.
