Often professors or other scientists from organizations outside of U of T come to our labs for periods of time for purposes of collaboration or training. In some cases, these collaborations lead to intellectual property that is created using university resources. U of T researchers hosting a visiting scientist are encouraged to have their visitor execute an Visiting Scientist Agreement at the beginning of his/her stay.
This agreement helps U of T carry out its obligations to research sponsors, requires the visiting scientist to abide by the practices and policies of U of T (and the laboratory in which they will be working) and acknowledges that the visiting scientist may be entitled to share in ownership in resulting inventions or discoveries in accordance with U of T‘s Inventions Policy.
All agreements must be reviewed by the Innovations & Partnerships Office (IPO) to make sure they comply with U of T policies, before they are sent to the third party.
The fastest way to get a visiting scientist agreement signed by U of T is to use the standard university template, found below. This will help to reduce negotiation times. To request a visiting scientist agreement:
Following the execution of the research agreement, all project participants will be expected to complete a Confidential Information & Intellectual Property (“CIIP”) Agreement.