Code of Maryland Regulations › Title 02 - OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL › Subtitle 01 - CONSUMER PROTECTION DIVISION › Chapter 02.01.07 - Invention Development Services › Section 02.01.07.06 - Mandatory Contract Provisions

Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 14, July 12, 2024
Every contract for invention development services shall set forth, in conspicuous and legible type, all of the following information:
A. The terms and conditions of payment, which shall be consistent with the requirements of these regulations.
B. A full, clear, and concise description of the specific acts or services which the invention developer contracts to perform for the customer for the stated consideration.
C. A statement as to whether the invention developer contracts to construct, sell, or distribute one or more prototypes, models, or devices embodying the customer's invention.
D. The full name and principal place of business, both in Maryland and at its home office if different, of the invention developer, and the name and principal place of business of any parent, subsidiary, or affiliated company which regularly performs for the invention developer the kinds of services for which the customer has contracted.
E. A statement of the fee being charged for all services to be provided under the contract, together with any terms and conditions applicable to the payment of the fee.
F. A statement as to whether or not any representation of estimated or projected earnings is or has been given by the invention developer, its employees, or agents to the customer. If so, then such estimate or projection shall be stated in the contract, together with a description of the data on which it is based.
G. A statement as to whether or not the invention developer's officers or employees, or any of them, are licensed to practice law in any jurisdiction or are patent agents or patent attorneys duly registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office and if so, a statement whether he or she will handle the customer's case.
H. The name and address of the custodian of all records and correspondence pertaining to the services being contracted, together with a statement that the invention developer shall maintain all records and correspondence related to the contract and the services being contracted for that customer for at least 3 years after the expiration of the contract. Identification of the custodian as the invention developer by company name and address shall be sufficient. The statement shall also recite that these records and correspondence will be made available to the customer or the customer's representative for review and copying at the customer's reasonable expense on the invention developer's premises during normal business hours upon 7 days' written notice.
I. A statement setting forth the approximate time schedule for the performance of the invention development services, including the estimated date by which performance of the services contracted for is expected to be completed.
J. If the invention developer or any of its officers, directors, or managing agents has or have, or if an affiliated, parent, or subsidiary of the invention developer or any of its officers, directors, or managing agents has or have, during the 5 years immediately preceding the receipt by the customer of the completed copy of the contract, been a defendant or respondent in any proceeding in which a finding of deception, fraud, false pretense, false premise, misrepresentation, or knowing concealment, suppression, or omission of a material fact with the intent that a consumer rely on the same, unfair competition, unauthorized practice of law, or violation of consumer protection laws or regulations of the United States, any state or the Federal Trade Commission, was a part of the basis of a final judgment of liability, a guilty verdict, or an injunction or consent decree by final order of court or administrative agency, then the contract shall set forth a statement describing the invention developer's final adjudicated status in that proceeding. Any such proceeding which is presently pending and in which the moving party was an agency or instrumentality of federal, state, or local government shall be similarly disclosed. In the case of a pending proceeding, the disclosure may include a statement of the status of the proceeding and an opinion, clearly identified as opinion, of the invention developer's legal counsel as to the merits of the allegations.
K. If, in conjunction with any contract with a customer, the invention developer normally uses one or more subsequent contracts, then the invention developer shall include in the contract a statement summarizing the subsequent contracts normally used. The statement shall include the amount of any fees or other consideration that may be required from the customer for the subsequent contracts and an approximate schedule of the expected times at or occasions on which the subsequent contracts and fees or other consideration will be proposed by the invention developer.
L. A statement as to whether or not the invention developer contracts to pursue or arrange for protection of the customer's invention by United States Letters Patent or United States Design Patent or any foreign patent.