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IP Rights for Foreign Visiting Scientists
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Brief Instructions

Listed below are brief instructions to receive permission from the Office of Technology Transfer to waive ARS• standard policy for ARS maintaining sole intellectual property rights for inventions and discoveries developed under a Memorandum of Understanding with a foreign visiting scientist, the ARS scientist must demonstrate and document the following information:

Describe what expertise the visiting scientist will bring to the project.

The visiting scientist must be equivalent to the ARS inventor. To establish this, include the visiting scientist•s credentials and work experience, i.e. abbreviated curriculum vita, which demonstrates they are a senior research scientist.

Sample Waiver Letter

SUBJECT: Waiver Letter for Intellectual Property Rights for Foreign Visiting Scientist

TO: Michael D. Ruff, Assistant Administrator, Office of Technology Transfer

FROM: (ARS Requesting Scientist)

Reference is made to the appropriate form ARS-215, "Memorandum of Understanding Between the Foreign Visiting Scientist and the Agricultural Research Service," hereafter called the Visiting Scientist and ARS.

(Visiting Scientist•s Name)is a senior researchscientist with (Name of Organization) who will be working at (ARS Laboratory Name, City and State) an ARS location under the sponsorship of (Foreign Sponsoring Organization). Included documentation demonstrates that this visiting scientist•s credentials and work experience gives them senior scientist status. Therefore, ownership of intellectual property rights will be as follows:

All rights, title, and interest in any Subject Invention made solely by employee(s) of ARS shall be owned by ARS.

All rights, title, and interest in any Subject Invention made solely by the Visiting Scientist shall be owned by the Visiting Scientist and/or the sponsoring organization, according to their mutual agreement.

All rights, title, and interest in any Subject Invention made jointly by at least one employee of ARS and the Visiting Scientist, shall be jointly owned by ARS and the Visiting Scientist and/or Sponsor.