Introduction to
Material Transfer Agreements
Research Administrator Forum 2011
Carl Morrell
Contracts Manager
http://otm.wustl.edu
Why MTAs?

MTAs are important because they specify the rights,
obligations, and restrictions of both the providing and
receiving parties with respect to issues such as:

Ownership of materials and modifications or derivatives
of the materials made by the recipient
Limits on the recipient’s use of the materials and related
liability
Restrictions on the recipient’s ability to transfer the
material, modifications, and derivatives to third parties


Why MTAs?



Rights to inventions resulting from the use of the
materials
Rights to publish research obtained through the use of
the materials
Reporting and confidentiality obligations
MTA Procedures – Incoming Materials
PI/Departmental Responsibilities
• PI/Department requests the material and obtains the
proposed MTA from the provider.
• PI reviews the MTA and completes any missing
information, when required, i.e. the address, description
of the research, name of materials requested, etc. (Note,
it is not necessary for the MTA to be signed by the PI at
this initial stage.)
• PI completes the appropriate Incoming MTA Intake form
– Academic or Industry provider.
MTA Procedures – Incoming Materials
PI/Departmental Responsibilities
• Forward the editable electronic version of the MTA
received from the provider, along with any instructions
that were provided (highly recommend to forward the
provider’s original email with the MTA attached), and
the completed MTA Intake questionnaire to:
MTA@dom.wustl.edu
MTA Procedures – Incoming Materials
OTM Responsibilities
• MTA coordinator reviews the MTA for compliance with
WUSTL policies. Some agreements may require that
OTM request legal revisions to the MTA with the provider
before the MTA is acceptable for signature by WUSTL.
• Once the MTA terms are acceptable, the MTA
coordinator notifies PI/Department and requests that the
PI sign the MTA (if required) and return to OTM. (OTM
may request to return a pdf copy of the signed MTA, or
duplicate originally signed MTAs, depending on the
requirements of the provider institution).
MTA Procedures – Incoming Materials
OTM Responsibilities
• Once OTM receives the MTA signed by the PI, the
WUSTL authorized representative signs the MTA and
OTM forwards the partially executed MTA to the provider
for their countersignature, with instruction to return the
fully executed agreement to OTM.
• When the MTA is fully executed, OTM will provide a
copy to the PI/Department and provider can then supply
the requested material.
MTA Procedures – Outgoing Materials
PI/Departmental Responsibilities
• PI completes the outgoing MTA Intake questionnaire
form.
• First-time requests to OTM to prepare an MTA for a
particular material, the PI is also required to complete a
Material Disclosure Form. This is a one-time requirement
as OTM must document the origin of the Material. (Note,
A Material Disclosure form is not required if sending
human derived samples, see additional requirements
below for human samples).
MTA Procedures – Outgoing Materials
PI/Departmental Responsibilities
• Archived Human Samples:
In addition to the MTA Intake Questionnaire form, if
human derived samples are being provided, a copy of
the IRB approval and consent form that were used
when the samples were obtained must be forwarded
to OTM. Note, if you plan to send prospective
samples (not already obtained from patients), please
contact the Center for Clinical Studies, OTM does not
handle MTAs covering prospective samples.
MTA Procedures – Outgoing Materials
PI/Departmental Responsibilities
• Forward the completed MTA Intake Questionnaire form
and the Material Disclosure form (if required) and IRB
approval and consent form (if required) to:
MTA@dom.wustl.edu
MTA Procedures – Outgoing Materials
OTM Responsibilities
• MTA coordinator reviews the information provided by
the PI/Department and drafts an appropriate MTA.
• MTA coordinator emails the draft MTA to the recipient
contact for their review and consideration.
• If the terms are acceptable to the recipient, they sign
the MTA and return to OTM for countersignature by
WUSTL. If the terms are not acceptable, revisions to
the MTA are negotiated with OTM.
MTA Procedures – Outgoing Materials
OTM Responsibilities
• Once agreed and the recipient party has signed,
WUSTL authorized representative signs the MTA.
• MTA coordinator then provides a copy of the fully
executed MTA to both parties, advising the WUSTL
PI/Department that they may send the requested
materials.
WU Quick MTA – For outbound materials
from WU (non-human only)
The WU Quick MTA, is a streamlined process
available to the departments for sending out basic
research tools to other academics/non-profits.
It requires no OTM involvement, provided the
material that you are sending and the recipient meet
the qualifications, which are outlined in the
instructions.
WU Quick MTA
If the material qualifies for use with the WU Quick MTA, the
procedure is as follows:
• Print out the form, and follow the instructions to complete
the required information.
• Retain a copy of the completed document for your
departmental records.
• Include a copy of the completed form inside of or
attached to the shipment of material.
• No signatures by either party are required.
Forms
You can find the WUSTL Quick MTA with complete
instructions, as well as all other forms referenced in this
presentation at the following link:
http://research.wustl.edu/Offices_Committees/OTM/
faculty/Pages/Forms.aspx
Questions? Contact us.
Carl Morrell
Contract Manager
Ph: 314-747-0922
Email: morrellc@dom.wustl.edu
Brandi Addington
Academic MTA Coordinator
Ph: 314-747-0911
Email: baddingt@dom.wustl.edu
or: mta@dom.wustl.edu
OTM Website: http://otm.wustl.edu
Janet Viehland
Industry MTA Coordinator
Ph: 314-362-4335
Email: jviehlan@dom.wustl.edu