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Sponsored Programs Administration
Office of Sponsored Programs
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Contract and Grant Administration

What does the phrase 'work for hire' mean and why does OSP see it as a problem?

By Michael Braem, J.D.

Proposed funding agreements sometime contain a section which seeks to label the work product generated by faculty research as 'work for hire.' This type of clause should not be agreed to without a thorough analysis, because the effect of such a clause is to relinquish MSU's copyright interests in the work product.

This is not only disadvantageous to faculty but runs contrary to MSU's copyright and publication policies (see, e.g., Faculty Handbook sections "Supported Research and Creative Efforts" and "Development of Copyrighted Materials").

For general information about 'work for hire', see http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ09.pdf. For specific concerns or issues, please contact your OSP contract negotiator.

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