São Paulo · Brazil
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Cases · Technology & intellectual property · Patents, trade secrets & technology licensing
Secure ownership of IP created by staff and contractors
Do we actually own the code and designs our contractors abroad created?
WONE Global reviews employment and contractor agreements in each country where the work was done and puts compliant assignments and confirmations in place under each local law.
Countries in the typical case Poland · India
The situation
What is happening
Code, designs or content were made by employees, freelancers or agencies in several countries and the company may not own it.
What is at stake
If ownership is unclear, investors and buyers discount the price, and a former contractor can claim the work.
Who faces this
- Corporations
- Mid-sized companies
- Founders and growing companies
A scenario
Software start-upFounder-led company · from Estonia · in Ukraine, Poland, India
It is preparing for investment and finds that key code was written by contractors in three countries under informal terms.
Where it ends The company owns its code, on paper.
A representative scenario of the work WONE Global coordinates, not a specific client’s matter.
Also asked as “IP assignment from freelancers abroad”“Investors asking who owns our IP”“An inventor claims ownership of a company-developed invention”“A university spinout needs invention assignment documentation”
The solution
How WONE Global handles it
WONE Global reviews employment and contractor agreements in each country where the work was done and puts compliant assignments and confirmations in place under each local law.
Usually led by Intellectual Property & Brand Protection, with Employment, Payroll & Mobility, Legal & Contracting and Transactions & Deals.
Step by step, in the scenario
- Week 1Contributors and contracts listed.
- Weeks 2-3Assignments drafted under each local law.
- Weeks 3-5Signed and stored.
- ThenClean answer in due diligence.
Timings are typical. They depend on the countries, the authorities involved and how quickly documents are available.
Decisions
The decisions involved
- 01Who legally owns each work under local law
- 02Which assignments, waivers and confirmations are needed
- 03What investors and acquirers will check
Outcomes
What you receive
- An IP ownership audit
- Assignments and updated contractor and employee terms
- A clean chain of title for due diligence
This is a general guide. Your WONE Global professional confirms the work, timing and fees for your markets before anything starts.
Services
The services involved
One area of expertise usually leads; the others move with it. WONE Global keeps them connected across every country involved.
Who handles it
Intellectual Property & Brand Protection, market by market
The status of the lead service in the markets that matter for this case. A named WONE Global Partner acts under their own licence; where none is in place yet, WONE Global confirms availability before anything else.
- Polandin the typical case WONE Global Partner Andrzej Zacharzewski · Partner Brief this Partner →
- Indiain the typical case On request Availability confirmed before any work begins Bring a requirement →
- Brazil WONE Global Partner Luis Felipe Balieiro Lima · Partner Brief this Partner →
- South Africa WONE Global Partner Kameel Keshav CA(SA) · Managing Partner Brief this Partner →
- Uganda WONE Global Partner Tony Galandi Kiire · Managing Partner Brief this Partner →
- Saudi Arabia On request Availability confirmed before any work begins Bring a requirement →
- Singapore On request Availability confirmed before any work begins Bring a requirement →
- United Arab Emirates On request Availability confirmed before any work begins Bring a requirement →
- United Kingdom On request Availability confirmed before any work begins Bring a requirement →
- United States On request Availability confirmed before any work begins Bring a requirement →
Other markets: WONE Global covers 100 countries. Name yours in the requirement →
São Paulo · Brazil
Kraków · Poland
Johannesburg · South Africa
Kampala · Uganda
Buenos Aires · ArgentinaWONE Global Partner · Argentina
Dr. Diego A. Adam
Brunswick · AustraliaWONE Global Partner · Australia
Dimitrios Katsaros
Discover
Where this case connects
The markets, corridors and guides behind this case, and the questions to put to Ask WONE below. Every link opens a page that links back here.
Markets in the typical case
Corridors
Services and subject
Worked examples
How it goes in practice
Researched corridor journeys, and representative scenarios on the same subject. None is a specific client’s matter.
- Europe ↔ India · researched journeyA French company sets up a subsidiary in IndiaRead the journey →
- India ↔ Africa · researched journeyAn Indian pharmaceutical company enters KenyaRead the journey →
- Corporation · from South Korea · in Germany, France, PolandIt wants protection before licensing to European partners.How WONE Global handles it →
Patents, trade secrets & technology licensing
Related cases
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WONE Global Intelligence
Ask about doing business across borders
Ask in your own words. Answers come from WONE Global's checked records, with every source shown, and end with the named Partner who can act. Go deeper on any point, or build a decision file.