A. Any contract for invention development services which does not substantially comply with the applicable provisions of this chapter may be voidable at the option of the customer. Any contract for invention development services entered into in reliance upon any false, fraudulent or misleading information, representation, notice or advertisement of the invention developer may be voidable at the option of the customer. Any waiver by the customer of any of the provisions of this chapter shall be deemed contrary to public policy and shall be void and unenforceable.
B. In addition, any customer who has been injured by a violation of this chapter by an invention developer or by any false or fraudulent statement, representation or omission of material fact by an invention developer, or by failure of an invention developer to make all the disclosures required by this chapter, may recover in a civil action against the invention developer, in addition to reasonable costs and attorneys' fees, the greater of: (i) $1,000, or (ii) the amount of actual damages, if any, sustained by the customer.
C. For the purpose of this section, substantial violation of any provision of this chapter by an invention developer or execution by the customer of a contract for invention development services in reliance on any such false or fraudulent statements, representations, or material omissions shall establish a rebuttable presumption of injury.
1977, c. 649.
Structure Code of Virginia
Title 59.1 - Trade and Commerce
Chapter 18 - Regulation of Invention Development Services
§ 59.1-209. Contracting requirements
§ 59.1-210. Standard provisions for cover notice
§ 59.1-211. Interest in inventions prohibited
§ 59.1-212. Reports to customer required
§ 59.1-213. Mandatory contract terms
§ 59.1-215. Enforcement; civil penalty; restraint of violations