Who Owns My Invention?

In a July 12, 2012 order, Suffolk Superior Court Justice Lauriat dismissed a lawsuit by urologist Dr. Grocela, asserting that his employer's Intellectual Property (IP) policy as applied to him was an unfair restraint on trade since his employer, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), claimed ownership of an invention that was not related to urology. (The order, Grocela v. General Hospital Corp. also dismissed a complaint that MGH had breached Grocela's right to privacy in violation of M.G.L.A. c. 214 §1B, which is not discussed.) The Court found that, as the IP policy was reasonably limited and Dr. Grocela had voluntarily chosen to avail himself of staff privileges, he must be bound by the terms of the policy.