Client wants us to sign a contract giving him all rights to work we have designed for him

[morea]

This client has been working with us for a few months... we have done some logo and business card designs for him as well as oher projects.

Now he has registered his company as an LLC, and his lawyer he wants to have us sign a contract giving him all rights to anything we have done for him. Can anybody advise on this? What do we have to do to make sure that we are protected? Are there any clauses/etc that should be included in a contract? HELP!!!!

The more people I meet, the more I love my cats.

Post Edited (morea) : 10/14/2004 6:26:52 PM GMT

[DeleteYourself]

Is the job finished? What does the original contract say about their usage rights?

if the contract doesn't specify, and the job has been paid for, I would say that they own everything, seeing as how they hired you to design logos and cards for them. They bought your designs = they own them.

If the job is not yet completed and/or paid for, it can probably still be negotiated. Also, why would you care how and how often they re-use your designs?

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[Jeff92]

Depends on if there was a contract concerning the work you have already done for him (now I know what happens in Canada, but you Yanks have some strange ways about you).
If he is asking for full right to the artwork, and he has already signed a contract otherwise, charge him for the change. ( charge him a per use fee maybe, much like stock photography)
If not, then be prepared to let the artwork go and have no control over where he uses it...

Besides, it sounds like the lawyer is writing up the contract? Is that so?

[morea]

We have finished several jobs for him... all verbal contracts because he is a 'friend' as well as a client.

I don't care about the actual 'rights' to the designs, but if I want to use them in my portfolio, I should be able to.

Also, since I presented him with 6 original concepts and he rejected 5 of them - only paid for one logo. Some day I may want to use something similar to one of those 'rejected' designs, and I think that I should be able to. I don't mind him 'owning' the final product, but the 'thought process' is mine.

The more people I meet, the more I love my cats.

Post Edited (morea) : 10/14/2004 6:27:52 PM GMT

[3howards]

that should be stated in the contract then ... you should have a clause in the contract that transfers copyrights on finished products to the client but allowing you to use the work in your portfolio for future business. legally they can't deny you that right. i know some may claim that once they pay for it it's theirs, well, not necessarily. you're not selling a product, you're selling services.

Instead of focusing on what you won’t be about, decide what you will be about and make that good thing the central aim of your life. -- Pieter Van Waarde

[DeleteYourself]

Have you asked them if they mind you using the design in your portfolio? Why would they care? Legal rights refer to using that design to make money. If you were to use the same design as a logo for a business of your own, or sell the same design to another client, I can see the problem. But, personally, I've never heard of a client minding the deisnger using a piece in a portfolio.

Again, specifics for issues like this can be part of a contract, but it wouldn't hurt to ask the client, especially if they are a 'friend.'

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