Legal document checklist (NDA, ...) when hiring part-time developers abroad?


1

I'm currently hiring some part-time developer abroad and wanted to make sure that I made them sign all the needed legal documents.

So, normally in those cases, what would you make those future employee sign?

A NDA? a waiver to transfer IP rights from the employee work on your project (also if that is needed and someone has a good sample I would be interested)? What else?

Hiring Outsourcing Legal NDA

asked Dec 14 '09 at 15:59
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Gommm
265 points
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  • If they are contractors a consulting agreement will contain everything. If employees the confidentiality agreement will have everything. I can send you samples if you want. Email me at dane "@" awrcorp.com – Dane 14 years ago

3 Answers


1

Dane made some good points. Before you hire anyone or talk about your technology, you need to be under NDA. Some consulting agreements include NDA's but some don't. I have found that it's easier to separate the NDA from the agreement because you may want to chat first with the contractor about your idea. So, NDA every time.

The consulting agreement with contractors is a must. Employees will have either a confidentiality agreement or something similar. Both of which should have an IP assignment statement that anything they create, while working for you, your companies owns. The consulting agreement should have that as well.

answered Dec 14 '09 at 23:53
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Jarie Bolander
11,421 points

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You may find "Securing IP Requires More than an NDA " helpful.

Disclaimer: This post does not constitute legal advice and does not establish an attorney-client relationship.

answered Dec 22 '09 at 15:16
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Dana Shultz
6,015 points

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Now, maybe I should open a new thread, but while we are talking about this matter here, let me just ask several questions.

What do you get by forcing some abroad developer to sing NDA agreement? Will that stop them from getting some ideas from you? Will that stop them to reuse the code they wrote for you?

They will get ideas from you with or without NDA. They can shave it up to be much different than yours, but again concept is the same. There is no way to forbid a developer to reuse the code they wrote. It's just ain't gonna happened unless he cannot physically access it (remote work can solve this to some degree).

So, what's the point there?

There are much better way to protect your product and idea and that's make it good and grab a market share for you.

If you have a top secret idea and have money to implement it, you will have a closed facility with developers from your own country and protection can be achieved.

But if you are about to hire a part-time abroad developer, what damage he can ever cause to you in this huge world (read: huge market)?

It could be great to hear someone that actually gained something from NDA and share his experience on it.

p.s.
I am writing this because in our company also exits this "need" for signed NDA with everyone we need to speak about our business and makes me very tired :)

answered Dec 15 '09 at 05:09
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Mojsilo
594 points
  • Part of the work I'm having them do is work for some of my customers who made me sign an NDA and are ok with me hiring and managing foreign programmers for them... So, having those contractors sign an NDA is a must from a legal point of view for me... But, yes I'm not convinced I could do anything anyway if they decide to violate the NDA... Still, I think having them sign it acts as a deterrent. On assigning IP, I think it's the opposite situation, as an employer I don't want to expose myself to any legal risk that could easily be avoided. – Gommm 14 years ago
  • I think the far bigger issue is getting they to sign that you own the work they do for you. As others have said you might not be able to enforce the NDA but many countries have different ideas of who owns a programmer's work and you need to make sure you can use the work they did which is what a consulting agreement really should do well. – Dane 14 years ago

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