Length of time for legal review of research contracts

The legal review of research contracts takes too long, and sometimes it takes so long that funding is lost.

• The Office of Research Services (ORS) in the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research has begun a process of reviewing the best practices of peer institutions to determine what systems could be incorporated into the unit’s procedures. The ORS works with the Office of University Counsel on an as-needed basis and tries to reduce contract review timelines for those under its control. The ORS’ Impasse Process provides a method to ensure that agreements with problematic terms are executed to allow the Principal Investigator to pursue the research project. The ORS, along with the OBFS/Purchasing and the Foundation, recognizes the need to do a better job of determining which unit is responsible for handling different contracts/agreements.