CONFIDENTIALITY & CONFIDENTIAL DISCOSURE AGREEMENT

If you are an innovator who wants to contact a potential manufacturer, financial backer or other partner, or if you are just thinking about sharing your great idea with others, then you must seriously consider preparing a Confidential Disclosure Agreement (CDA).

Sharing new knowledge and origional work which you intend to use commercially requires a high degree of mutual trust, which only a CDA can ensure.

Confidential Disclosure Agreements (CDA's), also known as Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDA's) are legally binding documents that enable you to record the terms under which you exchange secret information to other parties.

The other party to this agreement can be any person or any organization. For example, it may include not only potential business partners, but also your own associates, contractors, employees or even your family or friends.

Having a signed CDA means you will be able to tell potential partners more about your great idea, with more safety. Also, without one, you may not be able to tell them enough to get them interested.

Below is an example of a Confidential Disclosure Agreement (CDA), they come in all shapes and sizes, from the short & simple to the long & legalistic. This one falls somewhere in the middle and is, in our experience, the sort that people can most readily be persuaded to sign.

It is also recommended that you consult an experienced solicitor or patent agent about how to further protect your great idea.