You should consult a lawyer on this. They'll be able to give advice tailored for your specific situation. For example, some states have laws saying IP assignme

You should consult a lawyer on this. They'll be able to give advice tailored for your specific situation. For example, some states have laws saying IP assignments in employment contracts aren't enforceable for work done on your own time and equipment if it's unrelated to your employer's business (e.g., California[0], North Carolina[1]). Depending on your situation, you'll want a professional to assess whether your plan qualifies for that. A lawyer can also help assess your risk level. Just because your employer would probably lose a lawsuit doesn't mean they couldn't cause you a lot of trouble suing you anyway. In my IANAL opinion, the answer by @greenyoda[2] indicates an LLC is probably not appropriate protection for this specific concern. An LLC only protects you if you don't "pierce the veil"; that is, if you can show in court that you as a person and you as a company deserve to be treated as legally separate entities. There are lots of ways to mess that up, especially for one-person LLCs. I'd expect that if you work for a small company, your risk level is low in any case unless you're directly competing. A tiny company has better things to do than pay for lawyers trying to seize an app that has nothing to do with their business. But BigCo, with an on-staff legal team, may be less reluctant. You can also consider just asking your boss if the company would agree agree, in writing, that the company releases all claims to your side project. [0] https://law.justia.com/codes/california/2011/lab/division-3/2870-2872/2870/ https://law.justia.com/codes/california/2011/lab/division-3/... [1] https://law.justia.com/codes/north-carolina/2005/chapter_66/gs_66-57.1.html https://law.justia.com/codes/north-carolina/2005/chapter_66/... [2] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30660160 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=30660160