A dispute over software being developed for use by a group of hedge fund investment managers was never likely to be easy to resolve once a change of direction in the software development strategy took place without the appropriate consultancy agreement being finalised.
The dispute was over who owned the copyright to software created for an IT company by former members of a team of developers. According to one of the members, it incorporated some pre-existing code over which he owned the copyright. He also claimed that he had created further code which was incorporated in the software and over which he retained the copyright.
However, no formal agreement had been made as to who owned the software that he created.
The IT company claimed ownership of all the intellectual property relating to the software.
In a preliminary hearing, the court was called upon to rule over issues relating to the ownership and licensing of the software.
After an extensive analysis of the facts of the case and a lengthy consideration of the business strategy of the group that created the software, the judge concluded that he was ‘in no doubt that under the contract that predated the consultancy agreement it was implicit that the copyright belonged to the commissioning entity and not to the contractor’. The software developer’s claim was accordingly dismissed.
Misunderstandings are all too frequent when terms of business are not formally agreed from the outset.
To ensure that your contractual relations are properly evidenced and proceed smoothly, contact Dean Parnell on 0121 698 2200, email d.parnell@sydneymitchell.co.uk or fill in our online enquiry form.
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