Meaning
Administrative correction resolves gaps or breaks in the documented history of ownership for a piece of intellectual property. This chain of title remediation occurs when a buyer or investor identifies that a previous transfer was never recorded or was executed by an unauthorized party. The process stops once the paper trail aligns perfectly with the current claims of the entity.
Title Correction
Title Correction requires the location of every previous owner to obtain missing signatures or confirmatory assignments. It often involves reaching out to former employees or defunct contractors who contributed to the original codebase. If these parties cannot be found, the entity may rely on legal affidavits to bridge the gap.
This process adds cost to the closing of a venture capital round or an acquisition.
Assignment Verification
Assignment Verification matches the dates on physical contracts with the dates of asset creation. This step ensures that no work was done before a person was legally bound to the company.
Legal Finality
Legal Finality occurs when the public or internal record of ownership is free of competing claims. A clean record allows for the smooth transfer of assets during a future merger. This certainty is required for any transaction involving high value technology.
