Intellectual Property Principles
Scenario: Perfect Pitch
Bret and I are best friends and co-workers at a graphic design company.
We have an upcoming pitch for artistic web design for a new product. We decided to brainstorm ideas together. During the discussion, I shared some brilliant ideas.
What I didn’t know was that Bret decided to design a pitch by himself, using one of my ideas. He used his own skill, intellect and effort to develop the graphic design elements.
At the pitch meeting, the CEO of the graphic design firm, Michelle, was very impressed with Bret’s work. She praised him highly in front of all of our peers and the clients.
I was really upset that I didn’t get any credit for the idea. So I decided to complain to my boss, and to consider if I have any legal recourse against Bret.
Do I have any legal recourse?
The answer is ‘no’. While Bret’s actions may not have been ethical, or the actions of a good friend, legally he has not done anything wrong.
I merely discussed and shared ideas with Bret. But it was Bret who used his own skill, time and labour to design the pitch. It's important to remember that intellectual property law does not protect ideas but only the specific expression of those ideas. In this example, the expression would be the actual graphic design elements produced by Bret.
If my idea was unique, it would have been best not to share or discuss it openly without getting a confidentiality agreement (Non-Disclosure Agreement) in place.