BUS 303 Exam 2: Conquer Contracts,
Ethics, and Employment Law!
I. Intellectual Property: Protecting Innovation
What is Intellectual Property? Property developed through intellectual and creative
processes.
Types of Intellectual Property:
o Trade Secrets: Confidential business information (formulas, customer lists).
o Patents: Exclusive rights for inventions (utility: 20 years, design: 14 years).
o Copyrights: Protection for tangible writings (life + 70 years for individuals,
120/95 years for businesses).
o Trademarks: Brands identifying goods or services.
Trade Secrets:
o Definition: Product formula, pattern, design, data compilation, customer list, etc.
o Uniform Trade Secrets Act & Defend Trade Secrets Act: State and federal
laws protecting trade secrets.
o Unprotected Trade Secrets: Not legally protected if the owner doesn't take
measures to keep them secret.
o Reverse Engineering: Legally examining a rival's product or recreating a secret
recipe. Competitors can use the secret but not the trademarked name.
, o Economic Espionage Act: Federal crime to convert trade secrets for personal or
others' benefit.
Patents:
o Definition: Federal grant for exclusive rights to use, sell, or license an invention
for a limited time.
o Purpose: Incentivize inventors to make inventions public.
o Federal Patent Statute: Governs patent requirements and infringement
protection.
o Patent Application: Must be filed with the WTO in DC.
o PTO Decision Time: Within 3 years from filing date.
o Utility Patent: Protects the functionality of an invention.
o Patent Requirements: Novel, useful, and nonobvious.
o Patent Validity: Utility patents: 20 years, Design patents: 14 years, starting from
the filing date.
o Patent Expiration: Enters the public domain.
Copyrights:
o Definition: Legal right granting exclusive control over publishing, producing,
selling, licensing, and distributing a work.
o Subject Matter: Only tangible writings are protected.
o Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998: Individual protection: lifetime + 70
years. Business protection: 120 years from creation or 95 years from first
publication.
Ethics, and Employment Law!
I. Intellectual Property: Protecting Innovation
What is Intellectual Property? Property developed through intellectual and creative
processes.
Types of Intellectual Property:
o Trade Secrets: Confidential business information (formulas, customer lists).
o Patents: Exclusive rights for inventions (utility: 20 years, design: 14 years).
o Copyrights: Protection for tangible writings (life + 70 years for individuals,
120/95 years for businesses).
o Trademarks: Brands identifying goods or services.
Trade Secrets:
o Definition: Product formula, pattern, design, data compilation, customer list, etc.
o Uniform Trade Secrets Act & Defend Trade Secrets Act: State and federal
laws protecting trade secrets.
o Unprotected Trade Secrets: Not legally protected if the owner doesn't take
measures to keep them secret.
o Reverse Engineering: Legally examining a rival's product or recreating a secret
recipe. Competitors can use the secret but not the trademarked name.
, o Economic Espionage Act: Federal crime to convert trade secrets for personal or
others' benefit.
Patents:
o Definition: Federal grant for exclusive rights to use, sell, or license an invention
for a limited time.
o Purpose: Incentivize inventors to make inventions public.
o Federal Patent Statute: Governs patent requirements and infringement
protection.
o Patent Application: Must be filed with the WTO in DC.
o PTO Decision Time: Within 3 years from filing date.
o Utility Patent: Protects the functionality of an invention.
o Patent Requirements: Novel, useful, and nonobvious.
o Patent Validity: Utility patents: 20 years, Design patents: 14 years, starting from
the filing date.
o Patent Expiration: Enters the public domain.
Copyrights:
o Definition: Legal right granting exclusive control over publishing, producing,
selling, licensing, and distributing a work.
o Subject Matter: Only tangible writings are protected.
o Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998: Individual protection: lifetime + 70
years. Business protection: 120 years from creation or 95 years from first
publication.
