Can a customer claim background IP rights?
<p>A company has sent me a contract with the following clauses.</p>

<p>Does the following means that they can claim the IP on software I've created on the past, and make use of it? - even in the case we cease the agreement</p>

<hr>

<blockquote>
  <h1>4. Intellectual property</h1>
  
  <ul>
  <li><p><a href="https://github.com/lawpatch/au-ip_transfer/blob/e1f03c73bd15e8ddfa281aeff129154f734eff71/au-ip_transfer.md" rel="nofollow">Developer transfers ownership of the intellectual property rights</a> in the New IP to Customer, with the exception of any Background IP.</p></li>
  <li><p>Developer grants a licence to Customer to the <em>Background IP</em> as described in the table below.</p></li>
  </ul>
</blockquote>

<pre><code>----------------------------------------------------
| licence condition | value                        |
----------------------------------------------------
| Parties           | Developer grants to Customer |
| Type              | expansive licence            |
----------------------------------------------------
</code></pre>

<ul>
<li><a href="https://github.com/lawpatch/au-ip_license/blob/249478cd511a2ad08929d6aff10f95458601d0fc/au-license_ip_expansive.md" rel="nofollow">Expansive license description</a></li>
</ul>

<p><strong>Background IP:</strong> Background IP means the intellectual property rights owned by Developer:</p>

<ul>
<li>prior to the application of the Agreement; or</li>
<li>created by Developer outside the scope of the Agreement.</li>
</ul>

<p>The terms transfer IP rights only for the New IP, meaning that Customer would own the new stuff. Developer will still own their old stuff, but Customer will have the right to use the old stuff, depending on the license terms. If the license is as in <a href="https://github.com/lawpatch/au-ip_license/blob/249478cd511a2ad08929d6aff10f95458601d0fc/au-license_ip_expansive.md" rel="noreferrer">your link</a>, then it is forever (but this is a stub, so I assume that the license will be more specific and possibly restrictive). You retain all your rights to old stuff, customer will not pay royalties for the old stuff, and they can transfer or extend the license, or part of the license, to others.</p>

contract-law intellectual-property