Objectives
Rush University Medical Center (hereinafter the Medical Center) supports the research efforts of its faculty, staff, employees and students. Through the establishment of a set of intellectual property (IP) policies, it seeks to facilitate the discovery, invention, development and application of new research, ideas, creative works and technology which promise to be of benefit to the general public.

The Medical Center seeks to both encourage scholars, researchers, inventors, creators and authors through the allocation and distribution of incentives and rewards and to protect its own legitimate commercial interests and financial investment towards such discoveries, creations and inventions.

The objectives of the intellectual property policies are:

• To maintain the Medical Center’s academic policy of promoting, preserving and encouraging scientific investigation, research and scholarship within the Medical Center.
• To protect the traditional rights of scholars with respect to the work products of their intellectual endeavors and to establish incentives for inventors and creators by which they are able to share in the financial proceeds from their inventions and creations.
• To assist the Medical Center in retaining, advancing, motivating and attracting scholars, researchers, inventors, creators and authors.
• To foster participation by the Medical Center in research development and commercial application and to further enhance the reputation of the Medical Center as an academic research institution.

Applicability
This revised policy incorporates by reference the set of related policies pertaining to intellectual property (i.e., policies, ownership and allocation, procedures and Intellectual Property Committee) and, in turn, hereby amends those aforementioned policies to incorporate by reference the provisions of this revised policy. The entire set of policies supersedes the Rush University Medical Center Patents, Copyrights and Licenses Policy and Procedure Manual originally published in November of 1977 with a third printing of August of 1982. These policies apply to all inventions, discoveries, copyrightable materials and trademarks covered by the parameters of this policy as of the date of adoption by the Board of Trustees of Rush University Medical Center but shall not apply retroactively to any existing or pending patents, licenses, trademarks, copyrights or inventions disclosed to the Intellectual Property Office prior to the date of adoption. The policies further apply to and take precedence over any employment contract or agreement, assignment of ownership rights or any other arrangement or understanding entered into by an inventor.

Definition of Terms
The words below, as they may be used in the Intellectual Property Policy, shall have the following corresponding definitions and meanings.

Intellectual Property:
Intellectual Property is any new and useful process, machine, composition or matter, life form, article of manufacture, software, copyrighted work, or tangible property. It includes, but is not limited to, such things as new or improved devices, methods, processes, circuits, chemical compounds, drugs, genetically engineered bacteria, data sets, software, musical processes, or unique and innovative uses of existing Inventions. Intellectual Property may or may not be patentable or copyrightable. Intellectual Property is created when something new and useful has been conceived or developed, or when unusual, unexpected, or nonobvious results have been obtained with an existing Invention which can be practiced for some useful purpose. Intellectual Property can be created by one or more individuals, each of whom to be an Inventor must have conceived of an essential element or have contributed substantially to its conceptual development.

Invention:
A creation of intellectual property that did not exist previously.

Inventor:
An inventor is any person who makes a creative input to the conception of the invention, including full- or part-time regular or visiting staff, faculty, students, residents or employees.

Originator:
Any person who produces a work by his or her own intellectual effort, including full- or part-time regular or visiting staff, faculty, students, residents or employees.

Amendment of Policies
The intellectual property policies (with the exception of policy pertaining to ownership and allocation) may hereafter be adopted, amended, modified, expanded or repealed by the Intellectual Property Committee of the Medical Center with the final approval of the president of the Medical Center. Ownership and allocation policy may be amended, modified or repealed with the approval of the Executive Committee of the Medical Center’s Board of Trustees.

Ownership Policy
The Medical Center reserves the right to claim ownership as to intellectual property developed as a result of financial and other means of support (e.g., space, materials, personnel, or facilities) provided to faculty, staff, employees and students. In the clear absence of such support, the rights of ownership of such intellectual property may remain with the inventor.

This policy constitutes an understanding that is binding on the Medical Center and on its faculty, staff, employees and students upon whom it is effective as a condition for employment, engagement, placement, appointment to its faculty or staff, or involvement in any of the research or clinical activities of the Medical Center.

Policy
The Medical Center owns any intellectual property created by an individual who 1) makes use of the Medical Center resources (such as funds, space, facilities, materials or personnel, specifically excluding the library) or 2) created the intellectual property within the normal field of his or her employment responsibility and activity with the Medical Center, without regard to location or salary source.

Such ownership interest on the part of the Medical Center includes but is not limited to the right of the Medical Center to perfect its claim of ownership right; undertake any and all action necessary to protect its ownership rights; negotiate and execute any and all agreements which in any way pertain to the intellectual property over which it asserts an ownership interest; share in any proceeds from the sale or use of the intellectual property which may be due and owing the Medical Center; serve as the repository of any and all royalty monies or other income received from the sale, assignment, licensing or other disposition of the intellectual property; distribute and/or allocate the appropriate proportionate share (according to applicable Medical Center policy, agreement and/or arrangement) of any and all income received by the Medical Center from the sale or use of the intellectual property; make such determinations as to the disposition and/or further use, modification or development of the intellectual property; and take all such other action with regard to the intellectual property which may be reasonably necessary under the circumstances.

If the Intellectual Property Office decides not to pursue patent or other protection of the intellectual property within a year of its disclosure, that Office on behalf of the Medical Center may assign the ownership rights to the inventor. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in the event that intellectual property is assigned to the inventor, the Medical Center retains a four percent (4%) ownership interest in such intellectual property. If the Intellectual Property Office assigns ownership rights to an inventor at a later time, the assignment terms will be determined by the Intellectual Property Office.

Dispute Resolution
Questions regarding the applicability of Medical Center ownership may be directed to the Intellectual Property Office.

In the event of a disagreement or misunderstanding among or between inventor or inventors and the Medical Center as to the ownership rights or interests as to intellectual property, the President of the Medical Center shall ask the Intellectual Property Committee to review the matter and provide a written recommendation to the President as to the issue in dispute. The President of the Medical Center shall make the final determination as to such issue or issues in dispute.

Allocation of Income Policy
Intellectual Property (excluding copyrights and trademarks)
Subject to applicable restrictions arising from overriding obligations of the Medical Center pursuant to gifts, grants, contracts or other agreements with outside organizations, the net income from intellectual property (excluding copyrights and trademarks) received by the Medical Center shall be allocated as follows. Net income is defined as gross royalties and fees, less the costs of patenting, protecting and preserving patent and related property rights, maintaining patents, the licensing of patent and related property rights, and such other costs, taxes or reimbursements as may be necessary or required by law. When there are two or more inventors, each inventor shall share equally in the inventor’s share of the net income, unless all inventors previously have agreed in writing to a different distribution of the inventor’s share.

The net income from intellectual property (excluding copyrights and trademarks) will be distributed as follows:

• 45% to inventor(s)
• 5% to inventor’s department
• 5% to a Medical Center account to support the inventor’s research. If the inventor leaves the Medical Center this would revert to the Medical Center general fund.
• 45% to Medical Center. This portion goes to the Medical Center general fund to be distributed as determined by the president, in consultation with the applicable dean, department chairperson and relevant research administrators.

Copyrights-Allocation of Income
The allocation of royalties and other income from copyrightable works is determined by the applicable clinical or administrative department.

Trademarks-Allocation of Income
If a trademark, trade name or service mark is licensed by the Medical Center, any costs of procuring and administering the mark shall first be reimbursed to the Medical Center. Thereafter, the allocation of royalties and income from a trademark or service mark is determined by the Intellectual Property Office.