Collaboration and Agreements

There are many benefits of undertaking collaborative research projects with individuals, academic research groups or companies. For example: sharing specialist knowledge, additional financial support, publications, sharing expensive equipment.

Where there is potential for valuable intellectual property it is important to ensure confidentiality among the collaborating partners before exploratory discussions begin. We offer some notes on confidentiality.

Before collaborative projects are started it is important to ensure that an appropriate agreement is in place between the partners. This will typically provide for confidentiality and set out arrangements for ownership of background (pre-existing) and foreground (developed during the project) intellectual property. HSC Innovations can advise on the the intellectual property arrangements in such agreements.

Agreements that might include intellectual property clauses are:

• Funding agreements
• Consultancy agreements
• Research agreements
• Confidentiality agreements
• Material transfer agreements
• Clinical trial agreements

Standard model agreements for clinical trials, clinical device investigations and other collaborative projects can assist greatly. A list is available on the Model Agreements Library page. HSC Innovations will assist you to understand the implications of the intellectual property clauses.