Today the Patent Office published a precedential decision of the Compensation and Royalties Committee under the Patent Act. In the decision, in the matter of Actelis Networks v. Ishay Ilani, the Committee ruled that an employee may require compensation for an employee's invention, unless the employment agreement specifically held otherwise. A "standard" employment agreement in which the employee transfers its rights in the invention to the employer is not sufficient, as there needs to be a specific reference to the employee's right for compensation under the Patent Act. The reasoning of this holding is that this right of the employee is a personal right for compensation towards the employer, which is not part of the proprietary rights in the invention – which are the rights which are usually waived by employees.
This is a highly precedential decision which employers (especially in the hi-tech industry) must take into account while drafting employment agreement.