SRA FAQs

No.  The SRA is between Yale and the sponsor.  The PI signs only to acknowledge that s/he has read and understands the SRA and agrees to use reasonable efforts to uphold his/her obligations set forth therein.

Yale owns intellectual property created under sponsored research projects.  Companies sponsoring research can receive rights to the intellectual property in the form of a limited-term option to a license.

No.  Yale is a research and educational institution whose investigators must be able to publish freely.  The Sponsor may review manuscripts before they are publicly disclosed in order to identify its confidential information and to seek protection for inventions disclosed in the publications.

Under Yale policy, Yale takes title to inventions created here.  This is consistent with federal research funding laws. Generally, Yale does not enter into work for hire research agreements.  Any agreement that Yale enters into must be in line with Yale’s mission of teaching and research.

Generally, no. It is very difficult to set license terms for an invention that doesn’t yet exist.  Also, Yale is a 501(c)(3) organization under the IRS Internal Revenue Code. IRS Regulations state that granting rights to sponsored research intellectual property which doesn’t yet exist is considered a “private business use” of facilities funded with tax-exempt bonds.  Tracking and monitoring funding for campus buildings, which change and expand over the years, is difficult for universities.

Please call or email your OSP Contract Manager.  We look forward to hearing from you!