Intellectual Property Policy

PURPOSE

This policy details the principles for the protection, advancement, and transmission of knowledge generated in connection with teaching or research at Leaders Institute (LI). LI adheres to the Copyright Act (1968). This includes the moral rights of attribution and the right of integrity of authorship.

SCOPE

Except in stated written agreements to the contrary, this policy applies to all past and current staff, students, and affiliates of LI.

PRINCIPLES

LI is committed to:

• maximising positive impact in the expression, adoption, and commercialisation of IP, while adhering to LI values;

• fostering a culture of transformative learning, teaching, research, and scholarship that benefits society;

• recogising and respecting First Nations Peoples culture and IP;

• recognising and respecting the moral rights of IP creators of copyright works.

DEFINITIONS

​​​​​Affiliate: visiting academics and researchers, honorary associates, and contractors of LI.

Commercialise: legal rights exclusively granted to the holder of IP rights in with the IP right subsists, including sub-licenses. This includes any method, process, product, substance, document, or information to make, distribute, market, sell, lease, supply, or otherwise dispose of it.

Creator:

Any staff, student, or affiliate who creates or co-creates any IP. This includes those entitled to be named as inventors for the purpose of patent applications and authors for the purpose of copyright law.

Intellectual Property: any intellectual, industrial or commercial property, or right of a proprietary nature including without limitation all statutory and other proprietary rights (including rights to require information be kept confidential) in respect of inventions, copyright, trademarks, designs, patents, know-how, trade secrets and all other rights as defined by Article 2 of the Convention establishing the World Intellectual Property Organisation of July 1967, whether registered or unregistered or recorded or unrecorded, stored or incorporated in any medium of any nature or description and all other rights anywhere in the world resulting from intellectual activity in the industrial, scientific, literary or artistic fields. This includes but is not limited to rights relating to:

• works;

• teaching material;

• inventions and discoveries; and

• any licence or other right to use or grant the user, or to become the registered proprietor or user of any abovementioned items.

LI Resources: includes, but is not limited to LI premises, facilities, monies, services, equipment, staff time, paid leave, support staff and IP owned by or licenced to LI.

Staff: employee or official of LI.

Student: person enrolled in a course at LI, including exchange and audit students (unless context dictates otherwise).

Teaching materials: all works produced by staff, affiliates or students used in teaching at LI (e.g. lecture material, syllabi, handouts, study guides, course software and assessment materials) regardless of format (e.g. printed, digital, multi-media, web content), but excludes personal lecture notes by staff that are not made available to students or personal notes taken by students to assist in study.

Works: includes, regardless of format (e.g. printed, digital, multi-media, web content), literary (e.g. article, book, manuscript, manual, creative piece), artistic, films, television, radio, publications, computer programs and any other form in which copyright exists.

STAFF

Except as otherwise specified in this policy or in a separate agreement, LI, in its capacity as an employer, owns all IP developed or created by staff:

• in or during employment at LI; or

• when using LI resources (subject to any approvals granted);

• at the specific request or direction of LI; or

• as part of an activity funded or provided by LI.

IP created in or during employment at LI includes, but is not limited to, IP created:

• in teaching materials;

• while participating in any activity funded by LI;

• where IP is a component of IP generated by a team of which the staff member is part; or

• where creation has resulted from the use of any IP created or owned by LI.

STUDENTS

LI owns IP for works by students if created or developed:

• jointly with staff with the student as co-creator or co-developer;

• using LI resources;

• using IP already owned by or licensed to LI;

• as specified and agreed to in writing by the student.

Subject to the terms of any agreement to the contrary, LI does not assert ownership of works created by students in circumstances outside those described above. The owner of such works grants to LI a non-exclusive, free, irrevocable license to use such IP and to sub-license other parties to do so. Where a staff member is also a student, the student status takes precedence where the subject matter of the study and employment is similar.

AFFILIATES

LI owns the following IP created by affiliates:

• works created during appointment with LI while working on an LI project;

• works created using LI resources;

• teaching materials for LI;

• works created while participating in any activity funded by LI; and

• works created where creation arises from the use of any IP created or owned by LI.

Subject to the terms of any agreement to the contrary, LI does not own works created by affiliates in circumstances outside those described above.  The owner of such works grants to LI a non-exclusive, free, irrevocable license to use such IP and to sub-license other parties to do so.

FIRST NATIONS PEOPLES AND TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE

Staff and students involved in the creation or development of IP at LI shall ensure that they are respectful of and correctly acknowledge First Nations Peoples spiritual and cultural beliefs. Traditional knowledge or IP is to be acquired from First Nations Peoples on terms that are fair and with the agreement of the people from whom the knowledge or IP is acquired. Use or acquisition of traditional knowledge (including making a written, visual, or audio record) must be respectful of the secrecy or confidentiality obligations imposed on the material by the traditional owners. LI is also committed to protecting First Nations Peoples and traditional knowledge as being the IP of First Nations Peoples.

TEACHING MATERIALS

LI owns the IP in teaching materials created for LI by staff, students, and affiliates. LI grants to the creator a perpetual, personal, royalty free, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to use such teaching materials generated by that creator (but not to the extent that such teaching materials are generated or contributed to by other staff, students, or affiliates) solely for teaching, educational and research purposes only at other educational institutions. The creator may not use the teaching materials at institutions in direct competition with LI and may not sublicense all or any part of the teaching materials to others to generate royalties or license fees.

COMMISSIONED WORK

Subject to any written agreement to the contrary, LI owns all IP that it has specifically commissioned a staff member, student, or affiliate to create or develop for LI’s purposes. A commission will be evident if an agreement is in place which includes provision for a financial benefit or a period of release from teaching duties.

WORK NOT SPECIFICALLY COMMISSIONED OR CREATED IN LINE WITH AN AGREEMENT

Without limitation to any other provision of this policy, LI owns all teaching materials and works which were created or developed:

• for an LI course by staff, students, or affiliates;

• using IP already owned by LI; and

• with use of LI resources.

PRE-EXISTING IP

LI does not assert ownership over pre-existing IP created by staff or contractors unless such IP is of a kind that LI owns or is entitled to own of pursuant to this policy or pursuant to any other agreement.

COMMERCIALISATION OF IP

LI may use reasonable endeavours to commercialise IP that it owns and considers suitable for commercialisation. The process of commercialisation may be undertaken in collaboration with the creator/s of the IP and in accordance with this policy. It is solely LI’s discretion whether to commence, continue, or exit from commercialisation activities.

DISTRIBUTION OF COMMERCIALISATION REVENUES

If LI commercialises any of its IP, LI will distribute a share of net commercialisation revenues to creators who have a recognised interest in the IP that has earned that revenue. Net commercialisation revenues will be distributed in the following manner:

• 50% to be shared among all the creators (staff, students, and/or affiliates);

• 25% to the LI research centre (where applicable) for use as the research centre director determines in line with the strategic objectives of LI;

• 25% to LI for its general purposes, with the expectation that it will be used to foster research.

PROCEDURES

ASSESSMENT

LI will advise the creator(s) whether LI intends to proceed with registered protection and/or commercialisation of the IP disclosed within a reasonable time-period. Where LI chooses to proceed, LI will usually:

• require a written confirmation of IP assignment from the creator(s);

• pay the costs of protection and/or commercialisation of IP or arrange for a third party to do so.

Nothing compels an IP owner to assign IP ownership to LI if the Institute has no legal claim to the IP. However, LI will not usually proceed with or fund the protection or commercialisation of IP where it does not hold relevant ownership rights. LI reserves the right to revise a previous decision to proceed with the protection and/or commercialisation of IP. LI will advise the creator of its decision in writing. If LI decides not to proceed, the creator(s) may apply for protection and/or commercialisation of the IP or assign it to a third party at their own cost.

USE

LI may assess, protect, commercialise, acquire, assign, license, defend, or enforce its rights concerning IP. Staff, students, and affiliates have a duty to comply with all reasonable requests by LI concerning IP relating to LI. LI may require the creator(s) to sign a confidentiality agreement in relation to unprotected IP or assign ownership of improvements based on the unprotected IP of LI.

GRIEVANCES AND APPEALS

All grievances and appeals related to assignment and use of IP should follow the Complaints, Grievances, and Appeals Policy or Staff Grievance Policy as relevant.