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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 June 2012
PATENTS AND TRADE SECRETS
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OF ENGINEERS IN PRIVATE PRACTICE
Roy, an engineer, submits a proposal for a city project to the county council. The proposal included technical information and data that the council requests. A staff member of the council makes Roy's proposal available to Thornton, another engineer. Thornton uses Roy's proposal to develop another proposal for a somewhat different project and submitted it to the council. The parties dispute the amount of Roy's information that Thornton used.
Is Thornton guilty of plagiarism? Does it make a difference, ethically speaking, if the amount of information used was large or small?
What are the city council's responsibilities in handling Roy's proposal?
THE USE OF WORK FROM AN UNPAID CONSULTATION
A state agency considers designing a facility that requires special expertise in the field of solar energy. They learn from a federal agency that the Moreau firm had previously developed a plan for a similar facility for that agency, and so they contact the Moreau firm. The Moreau firm submits preliminary data to the state agency, who in turn includes that information in a proposal to a private foundation to secure additional funds for the project. The state agency holds many informal discussions with Moreau's firm and so leads that firm to believe that, if the project is approved, it will be awarded the contract.
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