Could the logic for data deposit go something like:

University has rights to the data
University policy requires the data to be deposited and says roughly how
Researcher is a university employee (or otherwise has a contract with the
university that requires compliance with policy)
Researcher therefore has both the right and the obligation to deposit the
data.

John K. Milner
Mail to: [log in to unmask]


-----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-copyrig
ht-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-vis
iting-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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