Brandeis Innovation

A Material Transfer Agreements (MTA) protects the rights of the providing entity (and its scientists) and protects against claims that may arise through the use of the material. MTAs also allow the use of the materials to be limited to specific projects and precludes the further transfer of the materials to non-approved recipients. MTAs are needed for the transfer of tangible research materials, for example:

• Mice
• Plasmids
• Reagents
• Human materials (blood, tissue, etc.)
• Cell lines
• Vectors

Whenever a researcher wants to send or receive research materials from another institution or company.  Not all materials can be sent freely between parties. Some materials have stringent regulations on their use and transport such as federal export control laws.  Universities and researchers can be fined and even face criminal charges for violations. MTAs can also protect intellectual property rights should an invention arise from the use of the transferred materials.

If you received the material without obtaining authorized permission from the entity that owns the material you risk:   

• being prohibited from publishing results of your research
• becoming personally liable

If you sent the material without an MTA, recipients have no legal restrictions on further transferring the material to other institutions or to other researchers. Bypassing the MTA process may cause the university to be in breach of an existing agreement. You may also risk:

• losing control over the material developed (i.e. recipient may publish on the material before you do or file for IP protection)
• becoming personally liable or penalties or legal action arising from such transfer
• exposing Brandeis and yourself to penalties or legal action. 

Only the office of technology licensing (OTL) representatives are authorized to approve and sign MTAs on behalf of Brandeis University. That way university assumes the responsibility on behalf of the investigator for insuring that materials are transferred under proper legal terms.

OTL can help you determine if there’s any export-control restriction before setting up the MTA and take appropriate steps to comply with export-control regulations.

Not at all. After you submit a request, OTL will begin working on your agreement and may contact you for help in facilitating its completion while keeping you informed. Some MTAs are more complex than others, but many can be accomplished relatively quickly in a few simple steps.

Any time you are disclosing information that is not generally available to the public, and which you wish to limit the other party’s use or dissemination. Such occasions may arise usually when you are discussing with an outside collaborator to write a joint proposal or presenting your unpublished work to a company.

Unpublished research; a protocol; experimental design; new discovery made in the lab; data generated using third party’s confidential information etc.

Public disclosure of an invention prior to filing a patent application may forfeit patent protection in most countries.  Disclosures made under an appropriate CDA/NDA are not considered public disclosures.

Use a “mutual” or two-way CDA when both you and the other party to the agreement exchange confidential information that should not be disclosed to third parties. Use a one‐way CDA when only one party is disclosing confidential information and the other party is receiving that information.

No, doing so puts the investigator in a position of potentially being held personally (and solely) responsible for any legal or business issues related to the agreement. Requiring the university to sign on behalf of the investigator alleviates that issue. Only OTL representatives are authorized to approve and sign confidentiality agreements for on behalf of Brandeis University.

Possibly, depending on what the terms of contract are. Some agreements may limit the disclosure to the point of contact referenced in the agreement. In such cases, students, postdoctoral fellows or other faculty would not be permitted to see such confidential information. It can also be on “as needed” basis.

Not at all. After you submit a request, OTL will begin working on your agreement and may contact you for help in facilitating its completion while keeping you informed. Some CDAs are more complex than others, but many can be accomplished relatively quickly in a few simple steps.

Data sharing is an important way to increase the ability of researchers, scientists and policy-makers to analyze and translate data into meaningful reports and knowledge. Sharing data discourages duplication of effort in data collection and encourages diverse thinking and collaboration, as others are able to use the data to answer questions that the initial data collectors may not have considered.

A DTUA must be put in place before there is any use or disclosure to an outside institution or party of non-public data.

Such an agreement serves two purposes:

1. It protects the researcher/institution providing the data, ensuring that the data will not be misused. 
2. It prevents miscommunication on the part of the provider of the data and the recipient by making certain that any questions about data use are discussed.

Depending upon the type of data (clinical data, human subjects, associated funding, IP-related), the DTUA is managed by either the office of research administration (ORA) or the office of technology licensing (OTL). Please send an email with a brief explanation of your data sharing activity to both otl@brandeis.edu, and orawards@brandeis.edu and we will direct you to the correct office and process depending on the type of request.

Only the ORA or OTL representatives are authorized to sign the DTUA on behalf of Brandeis University.

You can see templates for DTUAs and learn about the process at https://thefdp.org/default/committees/research-compliance/data-stewardship/