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Services to Faculty and Staff
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The director and staff of the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) are available to consult with faculty and staff on any topic related to intellectual property, technology development and industry relations. Please call, e-mail or stop by the Intellectual Property Office with your questions and ideas, or for general information.

Material Transfer Agreements
"Borrowing" or "Lending" materials from/to another academic institution or company requires a material transfer agreement (MTA) to protect intellectual property and publishing rights. click the link above to learn more about MTAs. If you recieve an electronic MTA from an outside organization, please email it to ipo@childrens.harvard.edu for review. If you recieve a hardcopy MTA from an outside organization, call our office at x43019 for further instruction.

Download our MTA form to submit information for outgoing material to non-profit institutions.

Invention Disclosure Information
Do you have an idea you think might be patentable or of commercial value? Download the Invention Disclosure Form below. Please fill this out and send to the IPO before you publish anything about your idea. To fill out, click the form link on the first page. Use the tab button to move among fields. To go back, click in left hand side of the line you want to go back to. Any problems? Please call David Altman at ext. 43019

Invention Disclosure Form (MS Word)

Confidentiality Agreement
Protecting your ideas with a Confidentiality Agreement during the period a company is evaluating them is essential. If you wish, to speed the process, Download and complete this one-page Confidentiality Agreement Form (including a description of what you are sharing, as an exhibit), and send it or take it to the IPO for its required signature before disclosing.

Confidentiality Agreement Form (MS Word)

Consulting Resources
Red Flags in Industry Research Documents
Industry/academic collaboration is important and ubiquitous. Be aware, however, that legal documents you receive from industry may be seriously flawed, and if you sign them will directly harm you, your research, and your academic career. They may create personal liabilities in unexpected ways. Contrary to what you may hear, these documents are negotiable, and listed below are Children's resources to help or do it for you. The Red Flags in Industry Research document outlines some of the points that can harm you and your research.

Red Flags in Industry Research Documents (PDF)

Consulting Agreement Kit
This "Kit" is not legal advice or a substitute for legal advice from your attorney. But it is intended to alert you to pertinent issues so you can look carefully at consulting documents that companies offer you.

Consulting Agreement Kit (PDF)

Licensing Agreements
Once a patent is filed the IPO markets the invention and negotiates a license agreement. The IPO also negotiates license agreements for non-patented research tools, such as reagents, software, and know how. Contact the IPO for additional information.

Related Issues
Corporate Sponsored Research & Clinical Trials
John Counts, Corporate Sponsored Research Officer
333 Longwood Ave, Floor 4
617-919-2722

Consulting Agreements
Office of General Counsel
Hunnewell 1
617-355-6108

Conflicts of Interest
Bruce Zetter, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer
Karp Family Research Building, Floor 11
617-919-2322

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