Agreement Submission

Ensure you have connected with the following team, as applicable, to confirm elements of your research project:

• Research Security: Prior to submission, ensure you have completed your Research Security training as you will be required to answer research security questions related to your research project in the Agreement Request Portal
• Risk Management & Insurance: If your research project involves any unique risks, Research Legal may require you connect with Risk Management for confirmation of insurability prior to commencement of a research agreement
• Indigenous Research Support Team (IRST): If your research project involves an Indigenous community or members, you may wish to connect with the IRST team to review, to ensure your project aligns with UCalgary’s Indigenous research strategy
• Research Services Office: If you are submitting a funding agreement which arose as a part of a proposal submitted with assistance from the Research Services Office, please connect with the appropriate team within Research Services first. Research Services will submit the funding agreement for legal review once they have reviewed the notice of success.
• People and Culture: The People and Culture team will support any hiring/onboarding activities required by your research project.

You will be required to clearly identify any co-investigators or collaborators involved in the project

Select the closest matching agreement type – see Agreement Types for more information

Clear start/end dates must be identified

• For agreement requests which involve the performance of research activities, you will be required to submit a detailed scope of work which clearly identifies the responsibilities of each party involved and any deliverables that may be due to a funder/research partner.
• For outgoing subcontracts, the SOW should clearly detail any deliverables due back to UCalgary from your research collaborators.
• Research results/deliverables cannot be guaranteed and UCalgary will not provide any warranties on the research results.

• For any incoming and outgoing funds, a detailed budget for how those funds will be spend is required.
• Budgets should clearly detail budget categories (i.e. personnel, equipment, consumable, travel, overhead, etc.). Certain funders may require additional details/specificity for reporting purposes. It is the Principal Investigator’s responsibility to ensure they have captured all costs associated with the performing of a project.
• For incoming funds, the inclusion of overhead as required by the UCalgary Overhead Policy (link to overhead training module) is required. Overhead should be clearly identified in the budget as a separate budget line item.
• For outgoing funds, details on the source of the funding to be used and any funding agreements governing those funds will be required.

Ensure all required certifications for a project will be secured. These included animal care, ethics, biohazard, and other applicable certifications. You may submit your agreement request prior to receiving certification approval, however agreement execution and/or finance project setup may be dependent upon receipt of certifications approval.

Research Legal will assists UCalgary researchers by negotiating research agreement terms which meet the needs of all parties involved. It is important to recognize that UCalgary is a public, research and teaching university and therefore must maintain our ability to perform future research, disseminate knowledge and ensure the academic progression of our students.

• Confidentiality: If confidential information is being exchanged, confidentiality terms will need to be included in the agreement. Be sure you have discussed with the other party any need to publish and how that may be impacted by confidentiality requirements.
• Ownership and Use of Research Results: Ensure discussion and agreement on how research results will be owned and the rights each party will have to use the results. UCalgary’s typical starting position is UCalgary will own the research results with limited rights granted to other parties for their use. The appropriate ownership/use terms will be dependent on the research scenario. Please also see UCalgary’s Intellectual Property Policy.
• Publication/no secret research: UCalgary is a public, teaching and research university with a focus on publication and dissemination of research knowledge. Many funding programs have requirements for the publication of results arising from a research project, subject to any confidentiality requirements governing information contributed by our research partners.
• Student involvement: Being a teaching institution, certain research projects may involve the participation of our students. It is important that research partners understand a student’s academic progression cannot be impacted, including no delays to student thesis defences. Not all projects are suitable for student involvement. Ensure agreement on student involvement is obtained upfront and all parties understand any requirements which may apply to those students.
• Reporting requirements: Ensure you understand any reporting requirements that may apply to the research project. For incoming funds, ensure you can track and report on items required for the completion of reporting. For outgoing funds, ensure that you have clearly identified all items you require your collaborator to report to UCalgary on so that you can meet reporting requirements to the ultimate funder.
• No warranty: UCalgary is a public, teaching and research university and as such does not provide any warranty on research results generated by the University.
• Insurance requirements: UCalgary requires that all parties it contracts with carry appropriate insurance for a given research scenario. This will include carrying general liability insurance as specified by Risk Management & Insurance.

• You may be required to submit a Conflict of Interest Disclosure and develop a Conflicts Management Plan for any real or perceived conflicts of interest.
• The receipt of any Principal Investigatory salary top-ups/fees from a research project will require a Conflict of Interest Disclosure and Management Plan signed off by your Department Head and Dean. Please contact Research Legal for disclosure instructions.
• If you have identified any conflicts of interest, please connect with Research Legal prior to making an agreement submission to determine if any pre-approvals are required before proceeding with an agreement.

Any agreements which involve the transfer of materials and/or data must clearly identify what material/data is being transferred and any applicable details (e.g. amounts, permitted use and restrictions, security requirements, etc.).