Commercial Contract Support

The Research and Enterprise Division will support you throughout your project and provide the legal backing to make sure that your work is protected.

At various points in a project with industry contracts will be required. The contract issued depends on the type of the project and the stage of the work.

It is vital that you don’t sign anything from a third party – please contact Rachel Machado rjm57@le.ac.uk for guidance.

Contracts

Confidentiality Agreements (CDA, NDA)

These protect the University's and partner's confidential, unpublished information, allowing you to discuss the project with the confidence that your work is protected.

Material Transfer Agreements (MTA)

MTAs govern the transfer of materials or IP between organisations. They are mainly used by commercial or academic institutions to share materials generated by research.

Collaboration and Research Agreements

These set out the duties of each organisation and publication rights, results ownership and exploitation, and any payment.

Consultancy and Analytical Services Agreements

These agreements outline the specific set of works to be carried out and payment terms. The contract will also cover ownership of IP and results, and often includes confidentiality terms.

Studentship Agreements

Studentships are PhDs partly or fully funded by industry. The agreement covers the work between the sponsor, the student and the University, and who owns any IP or results.

Grant in Aid

A grant in aid is a donation; it is possible for the donor to state a research area the money is used in, but they do not have a claim to any IP or results. Van Geest recently donated a record £7million. A grant in aid agreement states the rights of the donor and what they can expect from their donation.

Find out more about the services and standards you can expect from us.