Collaboration Agreements

Collaboration Agreements

What to expect?

What we do next

When we receive your request for legal services, we will check it to make sure all of the information we need is included. If we require any further information or authorisation from you, a legal adviser will contact you. We generally provide legal services in order of receipt of requests for legal assistance. If our help is not time critical please let us know that so that we can properly prioritize requests for assistance.

The work will be allocated to a member of our legal team who will contact you, give advices and together with you plan the negotiation with third parties.

Corporate Relations and Technology Transfer aims to provide quality legal advice in a timely and reasonable manner. However, please remember that we provide legal services to the entire university and like the rest of Aarhus University, Corporate Relations and Technology Transfer must also act within the framework of relevant policies, procedures and regulation.

Once an agreement has been negotiated and is ready for execution, you can arrange for final approval and signature by your Head of Department.

 

How Long Does It Take?

To put in place a signed agreement can vary considerably depending upon a number of factors such as:

  • the complexity of the project
  • the number of parties involved
  • how speedily the other party/ies respond to correspondence
  • the starting point of negotiations

It can take from a couple of days to turn around an unaltered University template non-disclosure agreement, to several months to agree a multi-party consortium agreement.

Fast Track Agreements

Clinical agreements

Aarhus University Hospital serves as a framework for research collaboration between the hospitals under Aarhus University Hospital and the Faculty of Health at Aarhus University. The researches performed by Aarhus University Hospital is organised based on the principle that basic research, clinical research and clinical development are closely linked. The Department of Clinical Medicine at the Faculty of Health is responsible for coordinating all research conducted at the hospitals under Aarhus University Hospital. The Faculty of Health at Aarhus University is also responsible for the quality of all research conducted at Aarhus University Hospital.

The guidelines for clinical agreements are described in a set of joint guidelines adopted by the university hospitals in Denmark.These guidelines cover all agreements between private companies and Aarhus University Hospital (and other research units in the region of central Jutland's hospitals).

The guidelines can be downloaded here (in Danish) (PDF).

All contracts concerning research collaboration involving employees at Aarhus University Hospital must be approved by the Department of Clinical Medicine. AU Technology Transfer Office assists the Department of Clinical Medicine with legal advice. AU Technology Transfer Office is thus responsible for administration in connection with research collaboration contracts, and for ensuring that contracts comply with the university hospitals’ guidelines. The procedure for the conclusion of clinical agreements always starts with the project supervisor sending the agreement to the Department of Clinical Medicine.

EU Consortium Agreements

Participants in projects funded by the EU are required to conclude a mutual agreement called a consortium agreement. The first draft of a consortium agreement is typically prepared by the project coordinator, after which the parties negotiate the final agreement.

Material Transfer Agreements

In cases where the collaboration between Aarhus University and an external partner includes transfer of tangible material, the parties enter into a material transfer agreement (MTA). This is usually in cases where biological material, cell lines, chemical substances etc. belonging to one of the parties are required by another party for research purposes. The purpose of an MTA is to clarify the parties’ rights and obligations in relation to the transfer.

Non-Disclosure Agreements

In most collaborations, it will be necessary for the parties to exchange confidential information. Usually, it will even be a prerequisite for entering into a collaboration agreement on a specific research project that the parties have thoroughly explored the possibility and basis for collaboration by exchanging confidential knowledge.

It is important that confidential information is handled confidentially. Regardless of whether the parties enter into a specific agreement on confidentiality or not, Danish law ensures that a person who receives information has a duty to keep the information confidential in some cases. However, Aarhus University normally enters into specific non-disclosure agreements (NDA) when confidential information is to be exchanged with the university as the recipient or sender. The purpose of an NDA is to establish a confidential environment for exchanging information.

Genetic ressources

If you use genetic resources in connection with your research, you are required to comply with a set of rules which were laid down in an act of 9 November 2015. The rules are based on the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit-sharing (ABS) and EU regulations. To document that you are in compliance with these rules, you are required to submit a form to the Danish Nature Agency. The form is available on the Danish Nature Agency website (see link below). Under these rules, you are required to share any profits derived from research results which draw on genetic resources from the donor country in a fair and equitable manner.

Link to the Danish Nature Agency, information on the Nagoya protocol and forms (in Danish)

Contact

Agreements for Health

Agreements For Arts, BSS, NS and TS: