A license is simply a contract that grants one party permission to do something they wouldn’t otherwise have a legal right to do. As a business owner or administrator, you may grant a license allowing others to use your products, or you may obtain a license to use someone else’s copyright-protected work, software or app, or trademarks.

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Protect yourself
Hiring an attorney to review a license or write a new one for you can seem like an extravagant expense, especially if your budget is limited.

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But without the assistance of legal counsel, writing a license, agreeing to one you’ve been given, or relying on a prewritten form instead of one tailored to your situation, is like playing poker: You may know how to play, but ultimately, your gamble is based on educated guesses about unknown factors.

The very nature of a license is that the licensor grants some, but not all, rights to the licensee. Thus, it is crucial that the agreement be worded accurately. It’s surprisingly easy for a licensor to give away rights they didn’t intend to and for a licensee to not get the rights they thought they were getting. Don’t take that gamble!