Material Transfer Agreements
The CWRU Technology Transfer Office (TTO) is responsible for the review and negotiation of material transfer agreements (MTAs), and the Office of Research Administration (ORA) is responsible for the review and negotiation of data use agreements (DUAs). We assist with the preparation and execution of these documents. Every MTA is required to be signed by an authorized signatory for the university; this can only be done by the TTO.
For your MTA:
Contact Tyler Gray at tjg47@case.edu or leave a message at 216.368.1401 for assistance with your MTA.
For all MTA requests, please complete and sign the MTA Intake Form (as a Word document or in Google Forms) and return to Tyler Gray.
The MTA Process:
Once TTO receives an MTA Intake Form, a draft agreement is reviewed or generated, and the terms must be negotiated with the other party. Certain terms may require review and approval from the Office of General Counsel. Once the terms of the MTA are agreed upon, signatures are collected from each party. When the MTA is fully signed by both parties (i.e. “Fully Executed”), the final agreement is circulated and the material transfer may proceed.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
What is an MTA?
An MTA is a legally binding contract between two organizations (Provider and Recipient) for the transfer of tangible research materials.
When do I need to request an MTA?
An MTA should be put in place any time tangible research materials are transferred from one institution to another for non-commercial research use.
Why are MTAs important?
An MTA provides protection (to both provider and recipient) on ownership rights, intellectual property, academic publication, permitted use and liability. In the absence of an MTA, one can lose valuable intellectual property and other rights.
Do I need to submit an MTA if I am transferring samples within CWRU?
No, only transfers between institutions require MTAs.
Can someone other than the PI create and submit an MTA Intake Form for that PI?
Yes. Once the TTO receives the MTA Intake Form, we will contact the PI listed along with the person submitting the form, regarding their MTA.
Who is authorized to sign MTAs?
Only approved signatories from the CWRU Technology Transfer Office may sign for the university, though often PIs are asked to sign that they have “Read and Acknowledged” the agreement.
Can I submit one request to cover multiple materials?
If all materials have the same recipient, then yes, one request can be made. You are required to list and describe each material being transferred, separately in the internal MTA Intake Form.
Data Use Agreements
The Office of Research Administration (ORA) is responsible for the review and negotiation of data use agreements (DUAs). We assist with the preparation and execution of these documents. Every DUA is required to be signed by an authorized signatory for the university; this can only be done by the ORA.
For your DUA:
In order to initiate a Data Use Agreement or Data Access Agreement, a Data Use/Access Request Form needs to be submitted.
- The form has questions designed to help DUA staff determine the type of DUA needed and regulatory requirements.
- As you are completing the form, please provide as much detail as possible.
- The form has branching logic and contains questions regarding funding, type of data to be accessed or transferred, data storage, data security, and human subjects information.
- To assist with the completion of the form all of the questions, branching logic and additional guidance are provided in the DUA Request Form and Guidance Document.
If you have questions about Data Use/Access Agreements please email cwru-dua@case.edu with your questions and a DUA staff member will get back to you.
Human Samples or Data
Any material transfer agreement for human-related data or human-derived samples must be approved by an IRB or receive a non-human subject determination from the CWRU IRB before the MTA can be finalized. For DUAs, IRB approval or a non-human subject determination may be required.