Software

[EliteProgrammer]

What is the name of your state? Wyoming

I have a few questions for the experts. I graduated from college in the computer area with the knowledge of 12 different computer programmer languages. I am very good in this area of technology.

If I develop computer software for a software company and after I leave them I then decide to go and create my own software company or even for that matter work for another company in the software area can a previous employer easily convince a judge to force a new employer or myself to disclose source code of a software project at his or her own whim in the event they feel copyright infringement???

Would developing in a different area make any difference???

EliteProgrammer

 

[Some Random Guy]

In order to convince a judge to have your new employer release source code, you would have gone through many many steps.

1. Old employer would suspect infringement
2. Old employer would find similarities in your old code and the new software
3. Old employer gets lawyers to send threatening letters
4. Many letters go back and forth between lawyers at old and new employers.
5. Old employer sues you/your new employer
6. Old employer files for discovery of the new code
7. New employer files to quash the subpoena
8. New Employer files to require all source code to be kept confidential in litigation and be seen only by legal team and not by old employer's programming staff.
9. Lots of motions back and forth.
10. Old employer might get to see your code.

So yes he may be able to see the code, but he would spend a lot of time and money before getting to that point.

Put things in order first: Do not take any work papers, source code, backup tapes or laptops from your old employer. Do not work on any projects at your new employer where you are reverse engineering your old employer's software. Keep all design documentation showing the development process at the new company.

 

[EliteProgrammer]

Thanks

In order to convince a judge to have your new employer release source code, you would have gone through many many steps.

1. Old employer would suspect infringement
2. Old employer would find similarities in your old code and the new software
3. Old employer gets lawyers to send threatening letters
4. Many letters go back and forth between lawyers at old and new employers.
5. Old employer sues you/your new employer
6. Old employer files for discovery of the new code
7. New employer files to quash the subpoena
8. New Employer files to require all source code to be kept confidential in litigation and be seen only by legal team and not by old employer's programming staff.
9. Lots of motions back and forth.
10. Old employer might get to see your code.

So yes he may be able to see the code, but he would spend a lot of time and money before getting to that point.

Put things in order first: Do not take any work papers, source code, backup tapes or laptops from your old employer. Do not work on any projects at your new employer where you are reverse engineering your old employer's software. Keep all design documentation showing the development process at the new company.

Thanks for the information. Sad thing is that if a previous employer gets a bug and runs with it even though you may be totally inocent it will still damage your standing with the new company on the job because of their added legal expenses and inconvienence or even by revealing code that you wrote for a new business venture to court appointed people who should not use it but they may not follow the court orders.

Hey, if a judge were to demand that the source code be revealed would it normally require that 100% of the code for the entire program be revealed or just tiny little bits???

Could I assume that if I were to develop in a different software area that a judge would probably not consider forcing the revealing of the source code and toss it out of the courts if the previous employer only suspects something without any other proof???

I ask this stuff mainly to help myself out in case of future litigation. My brother works for a huge company that is allways chasing after their previous employees and sometimes it even sounds as though it could be a revenge thing by the old company for them leaving them to work for somebody else.

I have heard that in states with peticular laws in this area some judges will award the prevailing party all legal expenses in addition to other awards. In this state all potential employers force you to sign a paper agreeing to pay any and all legal expenses aquired by the prevailing party.

EliteProgrammer

 

[EliteProgrammer]

Thanks

Put things in order first: Do not take any work papers, source code, backup tapes or laptops from your old employer. Do not work on any projects at your new employer where you are reverse engineering your old employer's software. Keep all design documentation showing the development process at the new company.

That is pretty good advice thanks.

EliteProgrammer

 

[Some Random Guy]

Hey, if a judge were to demand that the source code be revealed would it normally require that 100% of the code for the entire program be revealed or just tiny little bits???

That's something for the lawyers to argue about. one side will want all of the code and the other side will say that
1. you are one of a team of programmers working on the program
2. The program already existed before you joined the company
3. You only worked on modules A, B, C within the program

therefore, your new employer will only want to show the code for A, B and C that was changed since you joined the company. And that's assuming that the old company can say that A, B and C are the pieces similar to your old work.

Yes, former employers can be vindictive. But in the end, only the lawyers make money off of these petty disputes.

 

[EliteProgrammer]

Sad But True

Yes, former employers can be vindictive. But in the end, only the lawyers make money off of these petty disputes.

Doesn't that just bite, and us the employees may get nothing more than a bad reference out of the deal.

Thanks for all of the insight. Just two more questions on this issue if that is OK.

I have watched advertisements for programmers nationwide and it appears that different employers use different programming languages. Would the fact that if an old employer used a language such MS.basic or JAVA and I were to make a program simular or not simular at all but done 100% in C++ or in C# for a new business venture have much baring on a judges decision to push for disclosure or continueing with the case???

Last question. I heard that Bill Ga..s did this over a browser integrated with an OS. What if a judge ordered a disclosure and I simply refused his or her orders. Would it simply be daily fines as the courts only recourse simular to the above mentioned example???

Thanks very much for all of your advice,

Going to work in the tech field is not as simple as they make it out to be in college. I think that many college grads could be in for some rude awakenings after graduation.

EliteProgrammer

 

[Some Random Guy]

If you used a different language, then that makes it far lass likely that you stole their code line for line. But you could have manually translated the code to theh new language - a relatively quick process, but not very useful.

But really, if they are going to get to the discovery phase of a lawsuit, they would be looking at tens of thousands of dollars in lawyer fees before they even got to that point.

If you are a low level programmer with little input on the overall system design, then you have nothing to worry about. If you are one of the top designers and are moving from one search company (like Microsoft) to another (like Google), then there will be a lot more scrutiny.

Going to work in the tech field is not as simple as they make it out to be in college.

Any job that pays well requires a lot of hard work or else a fast getaway car.

 

[EliteProgrammer]

Thanks

Thanks for all of the free advice,

EliteProgrammer