How to read an NDA [Non-Disclosure Agreements]

Readers of the business pages will know that the financial value of technical informations at long last being recognised. Technical information, intellectual property, can be covered by several different legal rights, depending on its nature. Confidentiality applied to know-how is one of the most common. One type of legal agreement that engineers are very likely to have to deal with is a Confidentiality Agreement, often called a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA). In many companies, a standard form of a fill-in-the-blanks type is available for engineers to use, especially for suddenly arranged meetings with outsiders. While it is advisable not to alter the standard wording (too much) without legal input, knowledge of the general principles should be a part of an engineer´s education. This article discusses when to use and NDA, the types of NDA, what and NDA covers and what the recipient can do with the information, and how long an NDA lasts.