For corporations and law firms alike, securing patent rights has always been a delicate yet crucial aspect of business practice. Existing practices may, however, be insufficient in fully capturing these rights, particularly when relying on employee handbooks, as suggested by a recent Federal Circuit case, Omni Medsci v. Apple.
The case of Omni Medsci v. Apple shines a light on a prevailing problematic practice: relying on employee handbooks as a means to capture future intellectual property rights. While it is commonplace for these handbooks to necessitate a transfer of future inventiveness from employees, this mandated transfer often causes more problems than it resolves.
The binding nature of these handbooks, usually agreed upon by the employee at the onset of their employment, is typically not considered to be an official contract. Hence, from a legal perspective, these handbooks may not suffice as a contractual obligation for the employees to bestow future intellectual rights to their employer.
Such a scenario has been highlighted by the Omni Medsci v. Apple case. Although specifics of the case have not been divulged, its crux lies in the insufficiency of an employee handbook to cover for future intellectual property rights. This suggests a critical flaw in how companies manage their patent rights, by relying solely on their handbooks.
This serves as an important reminder for legal professionals to reassess their corporation or law firm’s methods for securing patent rights. It might be prudent to reassess your employment contracts and handbooks, and to consider supplementary measures to ensure those important rights do not slip through the legal cracks.