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[FREQUENTLY
ASKED QUESTIONS]
Patents
When
should I disclose to PARTEQ?
How
can I protect myself against inadvertent disclosure?
What happens if I
have already disclosed my invention?
Make an invention
disclosure
Copyright
How do I obtain a
copyright?
How
long does copyright last?
Who owns a copyright?
Can I sell my copyright?
Do
I need to register my copyright?
What are moral rights?
What is a copyright
licence?
How does the Queen's
graduate student copyright licence work?
Who do I talk to at
Queen's about copyright issues?
PATENTS
When
should I disclose to PARTEQ?
It is advisable to disclose an invention to PARTEQ before
the details of the invention are included in any grant
application. Disclosure to PARTEQ is confidential. Although
disclosure in a grant application does not represent
public disclosure, at least in Canada, reviewers will
be exposed to the invention and represent an unnecessary
threat to patentability. In the United States, grant
applications may be considered public documents under
Federal Freedom of Information legislation.
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How
can I protect myself against inadvertent disclosure?
Before you share your discovery beyond the lab, you
should consider the following steps to protect your
intellectual property:
Confidentiality
Agreement
A Confidentiality Agreement should be signed before
any information about your intellectual property is
exchanged with companies or individuals outside of your
immediate lab or group of collaborators. Please contact
Donna
Ivimey, Research Contracts Coordinator, in the Office
of Research Services, at 533-6000, ext. 75844,
for information and forms.
Uniform
Biological Material Transfer Agreement
A Uniform Biological Material Transfer Agreement should
be signed before any materials (biological or other)
or models are transferred to companies or individuals
outside of your immediate lab or group of collaborators.
View/download
the form here.
Patent
Application
PARTEQ Innovations can help determine whether your discovery
is a patentable invention, and assess your discovery
for commercial potential. Call us for more information.
>>
View/download a confidential Invention Disclosure Form
here.
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What
happens if I have already disclosed my invention?
In Canada and the U.S. there is a one-year grace period
from the first public disclosure of the invention, during
which time the inventor can file a patent application,
provided that the disclosure was made by the inventor
or someone who obtained the information from the inventor.
Please note that for U.S. patent applications, a sale
in the U.S. (or even an offer for sale) of an invention
will destroy novelty, if the sale or offer for sale
is made more than one year before the filing date of
the patent application. This holds true even if the
offer for sale in the U.S. is made under a confidentiality
agreement.
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Make
an invention disclosure
>>
View/download a confidential Invention Disclosure Form
here.
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COPYRIGHT
How
do I obtain a copyright?
Copyright comes into existence as soon as an artistic,
literary or musical work or software is created, and
registration at the Copyright Office is purely voluntary.
It is, however, advisable to put the public on notice
that the creator is claiming copyright by marking all
copies of the work with a copyright notice. Registration
of a copyright facilitates the copyright holder's rights
in the event of a legal dispute.
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How
long does copyright last?
Generally, copyright protection in Canada lasts for
the life of the creator plus 50 years. This rule applies
to all categories of works, except those to which special
rules apply.
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Who
owns it?
The first owner of the copyright is always the creator
of the work. If the work is created by an employee for
an employer, the copyright may be owned by the employer
in some jurisdictions. At Queen's, all intellectual
property is owned by the creator unless otherwise agreed
to by the creator under a contract. See also the IP
Ownership Policy section.
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Can
I sell my copyright?
Yes. You can sell or assign the copyright in your work
to another individual or corporation.
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Do
I need to register my copyright?
No. Copyright comes into existence automatically as
soon as an artistic, literary or musical work or software
is created, and registration at the Copyright Office
is purely voluntary. However, you are advised to put
the public on notice that you are claiming copyright
by marking all copies of your work with a copyright
notice.
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What
are moral rights?
Moral rights, like copyright, are initially held by
the creator of the work. In essence, they are the creator's
right to be known as the author of the work and not
to have the work prejudicially modified or associated
with other products. These rights are separate from
copyright and are not automatically transferred if you
sell or assign your work. For example, an author who
has assigned the copyright but has not waived the moral
rights in a work may still prevent publication of excerpts
of the work that distort the original conclusions.
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What
is a copyright licence?
The owner of a copyright has the ability to grant others
permission to produce copies of their work. This permission
to copy is known as a licence. It could be an exclusive
licence to copy (no one else can copy the work) or a
non-exclusive licence (other licence holders may also
copy the work).
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How
does the Queen's graduate student copyright licence
work?
At Queen's, students enrolled in the School of Graduate
Studies and Research are required to sign a licence
document that gives Queen's their permission to make
single copies of their thesis, but only when it has
received a written request for a copy from the library
of a university or similar institution. Queen's is not
permitted to make any profit from providing a copy of
the thesis, though it may recoup its photocopying or
shipping costs.
Please note
that this is not an exclusive licence. This means that
students may grant another licence to the National Library
of Canada, and may lend or sell copies of their theses.
One thing that is not explicitly stated in the licence
but should be recognized is that if the copyright to
a thesis is later sold, the new owner (the "assignee")
will be bound by the terms of this pre-existing licence.
>>View
the agreement here.
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Who
can I talk to at Queen's about copyright?
For general information concerning copyright, you can
contact the Office of Research Services at (613) 533-6081.
>>For
more information about copyright, click here
>>
View Queen's Copyright Licensing Agreement
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