Contracts and Agreements

Contract Review and Approval Process for Research Agreements

To ensure your research agreement is reviewed promptly, refer to the Research Agreement Responsibility Matrix which can be found here. This guide is intended to assist you in determining the appropriate parties responsible for processing your research agreement. The primary agreements handled by the OTCBD are included below:

  • Confidential Disclosure Agreements (CDAs, NDAs)
  • Material Transfer Agreements (MTAs)
  • Corporate Sponsored Research Agreements (SRAs)
  • Clinical Trial Agreements (CTAs)
  • Data Use Agreements
  • Option and License Agreements for Technology Transfer

Each contract is reviewed to ensure the terms and conditions are appropriate for the university, including publication rights and intellectual property ownership, and complies with existing contractual obligations of the university.  The standard process for submitting a contract to OTCBD is as follows:

  1. Request a Contract: Request or submit a Contract for review as follows:
  2. Contract Creation and Review: Upon receipt of any required intake forms, the contract specialist assigned above will draft or review the terms and discuss any requested changes with the other party.  Where Temple is receiving funding under the contract, including CTAs and SRAs, the PI and associated department are responsible for submitting the sponsored project for approval using eRA.
  3. Contract Negotiation: OTCBD manages the negotiation process and coordinates with the PI and other offices as appropriate, Research Compliance, Grants Administration, Risk Management and University Counsel.
  4. Contract Approval and Signatures: Contracts approved by University Counsel are submitted for final approval and signature using TUMarketplace, unless the contract is designated for signature by OVPR-authorized signatories.  OTCBD facilitates signatures with the other party and uploads the agreement to eRA.
  5. Post-Execution Matters: Any post-execution matters, such as amendments, should be requested using the assigned contacts above.

Processing Time:

  • CDAs:  Processing time for standard CDAs is approximately 2-3 weeks.  Major items that are reviewed include ensuring invention disclosure forms have been submitted internally for potential Temple intellectual property (IP) as applicable, reviewing for any existing license agreements which may restrict the exchange of information, and determining the scope of the exchange.
  • MTAs:  Where appropriate, the University Biological Material Transfer Agreement (UBMTA) should be used for transferring materials between research institutions since Temple has agreed to the UBMTA terms and the implementation agreement can be processed in about 2 weeks.  MTAs may take an additional 1-2 weeks depending on the issues since each request is reviewed to determine the original source of the material and for any restrictions on sharing the material with collaborators or other institutions to obtain permission to share and flow down the appropriate terms. Other items may include demands for data or IP rights from the material provider.  These terms may also need to be negotiated to comply with Temple standards.  If a foreign entity is involved, export control review will also be required.
  • Data Use:  Standard data use agreements are processed in 3-4 weeks
  • Corporate SRA:  Using Temple’s SRA form, industry funded research agreements can be finalized in approximately 30 days
  • Clinical Trials, Options/Licenses:  Due to the complexity of these agreements, they require the most extensive review and negotiation.  Processing time varies greatly for each agreement. Your contracts or licensing representative can provide expected processing time for each agreement.

Authorized Signatures: 
Temple uses a contract approval system that ensures the necessary approvals are granted prior to obtaining signatures by the university’s authorized representative. Only designated signatories of Temple University can sign contracts that involve the university.  The signature process for research agreements is as follows: 

  • If Temple is initiating signatures, the university provides digital signatures using DocuSign or AdobeSign to the other party
  • If the other party is initiating signatures, please send electronic or scanned signatures directly to your contract POC listed above.  Submission to Temple’s contract approval and signature system will be handled by the assigned contract specialist
  • Wet ink signatures or signature audit trails and certifications must be requested by notifying the assigned contract specialist
  • IMPORTANT NOTE: Agreements sent directly to authorized signature representatives of Temple will not be signed since they have not been reviewed and approved for signature using Temple’s contract approval system. Therefore, please do not route agreements to Temple using DocuSign, AdobeSign or any other signature system without obtaining prior approval and instructions.  Where approval is granted, the agreement must be sent to the administrative official managing the contract with the ability to delegate the signature step to the university’s authorized signature representative. 

Agreement Templates: Standard forms are available upon request for the agreements listed above.  Please email snappi@temple.edu to make a request.

Contact us with any questions:
Stephen Nappi
Associate Vice President of Technology Commercialization & Business Development
Tel: (215) 204-5293
Fax: (215) 204-4609
Email: stephen.nappi@temple.edu