Is there any way to prevent co-founder from taking resources from the company?
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Is there any way to prevent co-founder from taking resources from the company?
I’m currently the incorporator. We didn’t finish post-incorporation of Delaware Corp. 1 of the 3 co-founders is not willing to exit; they instead want to dissolve the business with him taking the website and hardware designs. He says he wants to go into game design and no longer wants to work with us on a hardware software product. However, he doesn’t want to exit either. Hardware designs were worked on by all of us. Software, optics, and electronics are dependent on those designs. He was the one who created designs in Autodesk inventor, but never shared them. We want to retain all rights to IP. What can we do?
Asked on November 20, 2015 under Business Law, Texas
Answers:
MD, Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 8 years ago | Contributor
At this point, it sounds like a verbal stalemate. Get an IP attorney immediately. Your lawyer will represent the two of you and send him a letter to cease and desist illegal copyright/trademark/patent violations and will require him to compensate you both.
If the letter doesn't work, you will have no choice but to sue. This could be a lengthy and expensive process. He may not wish to draw this out, so it may be to your advantage to file first if he refuses to budge.
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