West Lafayette, IN asked in Contracts, Copyright, Employment Law and Intellectual Property for California

Q: Can I show designs I created under an NDA to another group within the same company?

As an engineering intern for a company, I designed things that cannot be shown to the public. After completing my internship, I kept my final presentation for my personal records -- I've never shown it to anyone outside the company and don't plan on doing so. Now, I am interviewing at the same company and am wondering whether it would be advisable to show the new team my work from my old team, and whether I'd get in trouble for having kept the presentation in the first place.

1 Lawyer Answer
Neil Pedersen
Neil Pedersen
Answered
  • Westminster, CA
  • Licensed in California

A: First, this question is showing up on a California part of the site, but the information about you suggests you are in Indiana. Unless licensed in Indiana, a California attorney cannot ethically answer your question. If you are in Indiana you will need to direct this to attorneys in your state.

Assuming you are in California, the answer will depend on the language of the NDA. There is no generic answer since the non-disclosure obligations arise out of the written contract. Often those agreements, or other employment documents, prohibit you from taking work product home or retaining it.

If you do not want to run afoul of the contract, you need to have it reviewed by an attorney.

Good luck to you.

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