Guiding Principle

While the primary purpose of university research is not to develop commercially viable inventions, the University recognizes the need to encourage the practical application of the results of research for public benefit. Therefore, UNLV maintains a program for identifying and patenting potentially useful inventions and negotiates licenses with firms which have the capability of developing, manufacturing, and marketing university and/or jointly owned IP.

• Both the university and private partners will own or have access to intellectual property (IP) that arises from a collaboration; however, if a project includes federal funding as well as industrial collaboration, federal law (Bayh-Dole Act of 1980) requires that the university retain ownership of any developed IP.
• State laws preclude the university from directly facilitating commercial enterprises. Facilitating such enterprises jeopardizes the tax-exempt status of its bonds.
• Therefore, the university normally retains ownership to all inventions and discoveries arising from research conducted in its facilities, regardless of patentability, and negotiates nonexclusive or exclusive licenses with its private partners.
• The university is committed to negotiating contracts that facilitate the commercialization of technologies invented by its researchers, and will transfer this IP in a way that recognizes the contributions of a private partner while also fulfilling its contractual obligations to its inventors and the citizens of the State and nation.
• UNLV provides a generous royalty sharing agreement for the principal investor (PI) when research endeavors lead to patents and licenses.

Guiding Principle

UNLV is a non-profit organization and needs to recover the full costs of performing sponsored research. Therefore, it is critical that the university recoup all its costs, including direct and indirect costs, to avoid running projects at a deficit.

• Sponsored research programs at a university should include the recovery of indirect costs, which cover facilities costs, utilities, and operations costs, as well as many other of the hidden costs of doing business.
• The university must also charge full indirect costs to avoid the appearance of utilizing public funds and resources, which may provide a competitive edge or other advantages to private industry.

Guiding Principle

Freedom to publish is fundamental to the university and is a major criterion of the appropriateness of a research project. In order to fulfill its learning, discovery, and engagement objectives and to meet statutory requirements related to its tax-exempt status, UNLV research must be disseminated on a nondiscriminatory basis.

• A fundamental principle of a public research university is that the teaching and research environment should permit the free exchange of ideas among faculty and students. Therefore, the university will undertake research only if the results of that research can be published or otherwise disseminated on a nondiscriminatory basis and within a reasonable time period.
• Publication of legitimate proprietary research with industrial sponsors can be deferred for a limited time to protect patent rights or to facilitate other forms of technology transfer.
• University policy precludes assigning to extramural sources the right to make final decisions about what may be published. A sponsor may seek a short delay, however, in order to comment upon and to review publications for disclosure of its proprietary data or for potentially patentable inventions.

Guiding Principle

The proper distinction between gifts and grants, with the different obligations in each case, is important to the integrity of the university’s research program.

• A gift is typically an irrevocable contribution of money or property from a donor to the university. While there may be some requirements, they are less restrictive than grants. Gifts should be administered through the UNLV Foundation.
• Grants/contracts represent “exchange transactions" in which each party receives commensurate value, and they usually have reporting requirements or specific restrictions on how the money can be spent. Grants and contracts are administered through the Office of Sponsored Programs.
• Grants/contracts with commercial entities should provide for full direct and indirect cost recovery.

Guiding Principles

The Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) is responsible for negotiating the terms and conditions of any sponsored program agreements. The OSP executive director is the delegated official authorized to sign and commit the university on sponsored programs.

• Faculty members at UNLV are not authorized to commit the university to contractual relationships.
• To establish an agreement with an industry sponsor, the principal investigator must submit a proposal to OSP for review and approval. Once the proposal has been approved internally, it is sent to the company.
• If funding is anticipated, OSP will then have lead responsibility for negotiating the terms and conditions of the agreement.
• When negotiations have been completed, the agreement is signed by the executive director.
• Subsequent modifications of the contract or grant, including changes in the scope of work, a change in the project's total cost, a renewal, or an extension must be authorized and incorporated into the agreement through OSP.

The Office of Sponsored Programs provides administrative support for industry sponsored human subject research.   Before initiating a sponsor-supported human subject research study faculty should communicate with our office as well as the Office of Research Integrity