Intellectual property generated from public funding is governed not only by law, but also by specific requirements, including the standards applied by the FRQ and those governing the institutions involved in the research.
Intellectual probity, scientific integrity and fairness are essential to the sound management of intellectual property and support constructive relationships between the scientific community, institutions and partners.
Standards applied by the FRQ
The Common general rules (s. 5.6) govern all FRQ-funded research in the following manner:
- the FRQ release any claim to patents and royalties, turning them over to the public institutions where the research is carried out, in accordance with the agreements made between the institutions and their
researchers where applicable; - it is up to the institutions to claim on the public’s behalf a share of the benefits of the research activities funded by the FRQ;
- whatever arrangements are in place with other partners with regard to intellectual property, the institution and the funding holder must at least be able to use the knowledge acquired for research and teaching purposes;
- the FRQ do not fund research whose results must remain secret. Research funded in whole or in part by the FRQ cannot be subject to a confidentiality agreement that would preclude the dissemination of the results (subject to a
reasonable delay to secure intellectual property rights, such as a patent), and; - funding holders must agree to publish the results of their research and to acknowledge support received from the FRQ.
Research funded by the FRQS that takes place in university health institutions must also comply with the Politique de valorisation des connaissances dans les établissements universitaires de santé adopted in 2001 by the FRSQ.
When the research involves universities or the health network, the FRQ also apply the Plan d’action – Gestion de la propriété intellectuelle dans les universités et les établissements du réseau de la santé et des services sociaux où se déroulent des activités de recherche adopted by the ministère du Développement économique, de l’Innovation et de l’Exportation in 2002.
Resources on intellectual property
- Copyright and Creative Commons licenses – Research note (Érudit, 2021)
- Foire aux questions: Gestion de la propriété intellectuelle dans les universités et les établissements du réseau de la santé (2003)
- Cadre de gestion et de valorisation de la propriété intellectuelle (ministère du Développement économique, de l’Innovation et de l’Exportation, 2009)
- Cadre de gestion et de valorisation de la propriété intellectuelle : Dispositions générales de mise en œuvre (ministère du Développement économique, de l’Innovation et de l’Exportation, 2009)
- La propriété intellectuelle en milieu universitaire au Québec – Rapport (Fédération québécoise des professeures et professeurs d’université, 2002)
- Rapport du Groupe de travail sur la valorisation des résultats de la recherche (ministère du Développement économique, de l’Innovation et de l’Exportation, 2005)
- World intellectual property organization
- IP toolkit for universities and public research institutions (World intellectual property organization, 2018)
- Database on policies, manuals and model agreements from universities and research institutions worldwide (World intellectual property organization)
- What is intellectual property? (World intellectual property organization, 2020)
- About the licenses (Creative Commons)
If you have any questions, please contact Emmanuelle Lévesque, Research Ethics Advisor:
514 873-2114 ext. 4280 or emmanuelle.levesque@staging.frq.gouv.qc.ca.