Can a company claim ownership of a personal programming project that you only work on at home outside of work hours? What if it's an idea that you quit your job to pursue?

To add to 's excellent answer, California has probably one of the most generous employment laws related to IP. "2870.  (a) Any provision in an employment agreement which provides that an employee shall assign, or offer to assign, any of his or her rights in an invention to his or her employer shall not apply to an invention that the employee developed entirely on his or her own time without using the employer's equipment, supplies, facilities, or trade secret information except for those inventions that either:    (1) Relate at the time of conception or reduction to practice of the invention to the employer's business, or actual or demonstrably anticipated research or development of the employer; or    (2) Result from any work performed by the employee for the employer.    (b) To the extent a provision in an employment agreement purports to require an employee to assign an invention otherwise excluded from being required to be assigned under subdivision (a), the provision is against the public policy of this state and is unenforceable." However, according to paragraph (2), if you work is related to your employer's work, (or even anticipated research) even if you do it at your own time, your old employer may still go after you, even if you leave the company. A great example is the litigation between Mattel (creators of Barbie) vs Bratz, because Mattel was arguing that the creator of Bratz had the idea for Bratz while working for Mattel (see http://content.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,2067001,00.html ) "Mattel countersued for $500 million, claiming that designer Carter Bryant, who created the racier, trendier Bratz dolls for MGA, had come up with the idea while he was employed by Mattel to design the more demure Barbies. Bryant joined MGA in 2000, and the company launched Bratz one year later."

It very much depends on the laws applicable to the labour relationship. This is a typical question one might ask a lawyer qualified to practice law in your jurisdiction. And even in jurisdictions that are very protective of the employee, there might be circumstances under which your question could be answered with "in this case, pretty much yes".

First things first - take a look at the great answers provided by Gil, Konstantinos, and Aaron (check out a recent of mine on the same subject). However, one thing that I feel was not stressed enough is the need to talk to a lawyer. You are in a dicey situation and speaking with an attorney will provide you with much more of a definite and tailored strategy than the answers you find online. I’ll list some reasons why it is imperative for you to seek advice from an attorney: An attorney will be able to look up the labor law specific to your state regarding this issue. As Konstantinos alluded to, California is very friendly for programmers trying to create products on the side. Other states with similar (but different) statutes include Delaware, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, North Carolina, Washington, and Utah. However, just because you are located in these states does not per se provide you with rights to your creation so advice from an attorney is important in any jurisdiction. An attorney will instruct you on how to handle relations with your employer. This includes having an attorney to turn to if your employer retaliates against you. Also, your attorney may recommend an injunction to stop your employer from moving forward with infringing your product. An attorney will review applicable agreements that you may have signed during your employment. Trade secret, anti-competition, and non-disclosure provisions can be profoundly confusing, and sometimes hard to find when they are hidden in a voluminous employment contract. An attorney will sift through these convoluted agreements to determine if you have rights. An attorney will help you cull evidence to show you worked on your project exclusively at home, which will help if your case reaches a courtroom. An attorney will also help you negotiate with your employer to help avoid such courtroom! In the past, we at https://www.lawtrades.com/?t=quora have helped skilled programmers maneuver through sticky situations like the one you currently find yourself in. We value the need for bootstrapping creators to obtain IP protection, which is reflected by our affordable pricing compared to traditional law firms. Feel free to check out the site and schedule a complimentary 20 minute consultation with one of our experienced employment attorneys to better understand your options.

This issue is serious and can even have criminal implications (in some jurisdictions this could be “theft of company property/conversion”, and carry fines or jail time, etc.). In addition to what has been stated already, there are a few key legal issues/factors to keep in mind. There are a substantial amount of variables at play, the balance of which can substantially change the outcome here. Consider the following: How essential to the employee’s job function is the invention? Has the company ever expected the employee to develop the invention or to perform work that is substantially related to the invention? What fiduciary duties does the employee owe the employer? To what extent does the employee have a duty to disclose the invention? What intellectual property related contracts were signed, and what is the choice of law in those agreements? Is there a chance to license the invention back to the employer? Was the employee influenced at all by any of his/her work with the employer? Has the company previously turned down or abandoned similar sorts of inventions in the past? What duties survive termination of the employee-employer relationship?

Short Answer: Yes, it is possible! Developing a software program from home, outside of work hours, for which you quit your job to pursue can be problematic depending on the outcome of a proper analysis and all of the relevant facts (which are not outlined here).  There are several considerations: common law rights of your employer to own work that is created within the scope of your employment; and to whom copyright law grants ownership under these circumstances. We’ll ignore patent and trade secrets laws here, for simplicity’s sake. Under most common law (state-case law) principles, an employer will own the rights to all work product that is created under the scope of employment. Scope of employment is defined by a fact-intensive analysis, and depends on which principles are applied. In litigation, this is a question for a jury to decide. Generally, if the work is reasonable related to the work the employee was hired to perform OR it is foreseeable for an employee to develop, in light of the employer’s business and the duties assigned to an employee, then it’s within the scope of employment, and the employer has an ownership claim.  Software development is considered a “skilled” profession, for which working from home without supervision, “outside of work” will likely not matter. Ask yourself: “What were my job functions and what did my employer expect from me at work?”  If the employer has an ownership claim under this analysis, the more than likely, the employer will be considered the “author” of the software under copyright law. The copyright principle that applies here is the “work made for hire” principle, under section 101 of the U.S. Copyright Act. Notably, software is NOT one of the 9 categories that the work made for hire principle applies to; however, federal courts have construed the Act to include it. This presumption of ownership by an employer can be altered by contract.  If the employer specifically excluded your project by contract, or was presented with your development, and turned down any interest in it, then you may be able to retain ownership rights. If your employer has told you that they are not interested in retaining ownership, you should execute an assignment agreement to ensure that the technology remains yours.This answer is not a substitute for professional legal advice....