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Texas Health & Safety Code - Section 12.020. Protection And Use Of Intellectual Property

Legal Research Home > Texas Lawyer > Health & Safety Code > Texas Health & Safety Code - Section 12.020. Protection And Use Of Intellectual Property

§ 12.020. PROTECTION AND USE OF INTELLECTUAL 
PROPERTY.  (a) The department may:
		(1)  apply for, register, secure, hold, and protect 
under the laws of the United States, any state, or any nation:
			(A)  a patent for an invention or discovery of, or 
improvement to, any process, machine, manufacture, or composition 
of matter;
			(B)  a copyright for an original work of 
authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression now known or 
later developed that can be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise 
communicated;
			(C)  a trademark, service mark, collective mark, 
or certification mark for a word, name, symbol, device, or slogan, 
or any combination of those items, that has been adopted and used by 
the department to identify goods or services and distinguish those 
goods or services from other goods or services;  or
			(D)  other evidence of protection or exclusivity 
issued in or for intellectual property;
		(2)  enter into a contract with an individual or 
company for the sale, lease, marketing, or other distribution of 
intellectual property of the department;
		(3)  obtain under a contract entered into under 
Subdivision (2) a royalty, license right, or other appropriate 
means of securing appropriate compensation for the development or 
purchase of intellectual property of the department;  and
		(4)  waive or reduce the amount of a fee, royalty, or 
other thing of monetary or nonmonetary value to be assessed by the 
department if the department determines that the waiver will:
			(A)  further the goals and missions of the 
department;  and                
			(B)  result in a net benefit to the state.                                   
	(b)  Intellectual property for which the department has 
applied for or received a patent, copyright, trademark, or other 
evidence of protection or exclusivity is excepted from required 
disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code.
	(c)  Money paid to the department under this section shall be 
deposited to the credit of the general revenue fund except as 
otherwise provided in Section 2054.115, Government Code.
	(d)  It is not a violation of Chapter 572, Government Code, 
or another law of this state for an employee of the department who 
conceives, creates, discovers, invents, or develops intellectual 
property to own or to be awarded any amount of equity interest or 
participation in the research, development, licensing, or 
exploitation of that intellectual property with the approval of the 
commissioner.
	(e)  The commissioner shall institute intellectual property 
policies for the department that establish minimum standards for:
		(1)  the public disclosure or availability of products, 
technology, and scientific information, including inventions, 
discoveries, trade secrets, and computer software;
		(2)  review by the department of products, technology, 
and scientific information, including consideration of ownership 
and appropriate legal protection;
		(3)  the licensing of products, technology, and 
scientific information;     
		(4)  the identification of ownership and licensing 
responsibilities for each class of intellectual property;  and
		(5)  royalty participation by inventors and the 
department.                 

Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 143, § 1, eff. May 19, 1997.            

Last modified: August 10, 2007