Okay, I've come across a small problem. Perhaps I can get the answer from you folks, since I have no idea where to even begin to look for the answer
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If you created them on company time (rather than at home in your free time), then yes, money was exchanged for them since you were getting paid while you worked on them.
I don't know about ownership (frickenmuck? got any ideas?) but that was the only point i wanted to make.
Sorry to be the one to break the news, but the files are theirs. Since you worked as an employee of the company, everything you do on their time and equipment is owned by the company and not you. The technical term is "Work for Hire."
I'm actually not positive that whether or not it was done in their office or on their equipment would be a determining factor. What may be your loophole, though, it that this project was outside the scope of your regular described duties...
From copyright.gov: "Section 101 of the copyright law defines a “work made for hire” as:
(1) a work prepared by an employee within the scope of his or her employment;"
From artlaws.org: "If, on the other hand, if the work was not created within the scope of your employment, it might not be considered work for hire. If you are employed as a bank teller and create artwork that may be used for an advertising campaign for the bank, that artwork arguably was created outside of the scope of your employment."
No contract was signed, and you didn't get paid specifically for working on the website design. Therefore you don't have to send them the files. You left the company, and you have nothing to do with them.
They only have ownership of your files if they meet certain criteria, namely:
1: if the work was done on company time 2: if the work was done on company hardware/software 3: if there was a contract signed or other formal agreement 4: if you used an imagery that the company owns the rights to or you gained access to through private company servers/folders/etc (any royalty free images that they bought and had sitting on a server, etc) 5: if the work contains confidential or proprietary information
So, in short, if you did the work at home, on your computer, with software you bought, while not getting paid by them, under no contract or agreement, and the work doesn't contain any internal information, then it's yours and yours alone.
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I don't know about ownership (frickenmuck? got any ideas?) but that was the only point i wanted to make.
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copyright.gov
artslaw.org
I'm actually not positive that whether or not it was done in their office or on their equipment would be a determining factor. What may be your loophole, though, it that this project was outside the scope of your regular described duties...
From copyright.gov:
"Section 101 of the copyright law defines a “work made for hire” as:
(1) a work prepared by an employee within the scope of his or her employment;"
From artlaws.org:
"If, on the other hand, if the work was not created within the scope of your employment, it might not be considered work for hire. If you are employed as a bank teller and create artwork that may be used for an advertising campaign for the bank, that artwork arguably was created outside of the scope of your employment."
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(The comment has been removed)
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1: if the work was done on company time
2: if the work was done on company hardware/software
3: if there was a contract signed or other formal agreement
4: if you used an imagery that the company owns the rights to or you gained access to through private company servers/folders/etc (any royalty free images that they bought and had sitting on a server, etc)
5: if the work contains confidential or proprietary information
So, in short, if you did the work at home, on your computer, with software you bought, while not getting paid by them, under no contract or agreement, and the work doesn't contain any internal information, then it's yours and yours alone.
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