Many thanks for clarifying this, Veerle.
Anna
______________________________________________________
Anna Clements | Head of Research Data and Information Services
University of St Andrews Library | North Street | St Andrews | KY16 9TR|
T:01334 462761 | @AnnaKClements
________________________________________
From: Research Data Management discussion list [[log in to unmask]] on behalf of Van Den Eynden, Veerle M A [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 08 January 2015 17:36
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Ownership of data collected by postgrads
Hi Anna,
Irrespective of whether the IP of a data collection lies with the postgrad student or university, the student can deposit and licence the data for reuse/sharing/etc. This licensing does not change the ownership/IP; the ownership will be declared within the metadata record for the data collection. The depositor can licence the data as the owner of the data, or acting on behalf of the owner(s), e.g. the university. Also if data are derived from multiple sources, and therefore have multiple copyright holders, then the depositor can licence the data on behalf of all copyright holders (the understanding being that permission has been sought from all copyright holders).
You can see how this is phrased in the legal information of our ReShare repository: http://reshare-staging.ukdataservice.ac.uk/legal/
"I, the Depositor: .... Confirm that I am the owner of the copyright and associated intellectual property rights in the whole Data Collection or am otherwise lawfully entitled to grant this licence on behalf of each and every owner."
The copyright holders are the declared for the data collection in the metadata record.
Regards, Veerle
-----Original Message-----
From: Research Data Management discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Anna Clements
Sent: 08 January 2015 11:33
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Ownership of data collected by postgrads
Many thanks to everyone for responding - some very useful expert views so thanks for sharing.
Seems though that there isn't a real consensus but I guess that may crystalise as research data sets become more prominent as a research output in their own right.
My question was prompted by the need to develop a Deposit Licence for our upcoming research data repository. For full-text deposits this is fairly straightforward given that in our IP policy the Institution waives its rights to IP in journal articles, which seems to be the norm. However for research data, software, etc it doesn't and so the IP remains with the University (unless their are specific contractual agreements with funders and/or collaborators) - and looking at other IP policies this seems to be the norm also.
I'm therefore struggling to understand who has the legal right to deposit the data ... if the University retains IP then shouldn't that be reflected in the deposit licence. However those licences that I've looked at ... Datashare at Edinburgh, QUB, Exeter Southampton all require the depositor to confirm that they have the rights to deposit the data.
Am I making a mountain out of a mole hill ... I am not an IPR or Copyright expert so apologies if this is a naive question.
All the best
Anna
______________________________________________________
Anna Clements | Head of Research Data and Information Services
University of St Andrews Library | North Street | St Andrews | KY16 9TR|
T:01334 462761 | @AnnaKClements
________________________________________
From: Research Data Management discussion list [[log in to unmask]] on behalf of Angus Whyte [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 06 January 2015 14:42
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Ownership of data collected by postgrads
I contacted Charles Oppenheim to see if he has anything further to add.
He reiterated his view below, i.e. that students own the rights in data they create as part of a project when they are self or grant-funded.
That is in keeping with previous Jisc Legal advice on the subject (1).
The University of Oxford statutes quoted by Sebastian Rahtz below allude to this by raising the possibility for regulations 'reguiring' students to waive those rights. According to Charles (who may be a layman but is an internationally recognised expert one (2), if those regulations exist "such terms and conditions are unfair contractual terms imposed on students which could (and should) be challenged through the courts.
Other legal reports have said much the same, as does Monotti's and Ricketson's standard textbook on Universities and copyright law (Universities and Intellectual Property: Ownership and Exploitation)"
Accepting that students do own the IPR, where they legally exist, in my view the more important point is to strongly encourage student data depositors to use CC0 or CC-BY. By the way, Alex Ball has recently updated the DCC guide How to licence data (3)
Hope that helps
Angus
(1)
http://www.jisclegal.ac.uk/ManageContent/ViewDetail/ID/1893/Who-owns-copyright-in-works-created-in-universities-and-colleges-6-June-2011.aspx
(2) Charles Oppenheim bio see
http://researchsupporthub.northampton.ac.uk/2014/03/21/charles-oppenheim-visiting-professor-in-library-and-learning-services/
(3) http://www.dcc.ac.uk/resources/how-guides/license-research-data
On 06/01/2015 11:00, Sebastian Rahtz wrote:
>> On 6 Jan 2015, at 10:32, Martin Donnelly <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>>
>> Here's an excerpt from a message posted by Peter Murray-Rust to the
>> Open Science list last year, quoting Charles Oppenheim...
>>
>> "If a STUDENT has created the data as part of a project and they are self-funded, or receive a grant, then the student owns the rights to the data. If anyone else wants to use the data, they must get permission from the student. The student cannot be forced to agree. (Any attempt to REQUIRE the student to assign or license rights would be invalid in law; get the student to voluntarily agree).
> I really don't see how this can be true. Maybe it depends on the jurisdiction? Charles Oppenheim is suggesting a layman's interpretation of UK law which may be wishful thinking.
>
> To quote again our Statutes:
>
> "Council may make regulations:
>
> (1) defining the classes of persons or naming individuals to whom
> section 5 (1) (c) of this statute shall apply;
>
> (2) requiring student members and such other persons as may be specified in regulations to sign any documents necessary in order to give effect to the claim made by the University in this Part and to waive any rights in respect of the subject-matter of the claim which may be conferred on them by Chapter IV of Part 1 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988; ..."
>
> It seems unlikely that the University of Oxford would enshrine something in its statutes which was illegal.
>
> Students enter into a contract with the university, and may well sign away their rights. No, they can't be forced to, but equally the university is not forced to recognise them as a student. A free-standing "student" can do what they like, of course, but in exchange for being associated with the institution, they would be expected to follow its rules.
> --
> Sebastian Rahtz
> Chief Data Architect
> University of Oxford IT Services
> 13 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 6NN. Phone +44 1865 283431
>
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