Research Technology Transfer

The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is one of eight teaching hospitals affiliated with the University of Toronto. Due to the nature of the research at CAMH issues concerning industrial related research and the ownership and licensing of resulting intellectual property may sometimes become very complex. The increased amount of industrial related research necessitated the formation of a technology transfer office, which has the following primary objectives:

• to make faculty members and students aware of intellectual property rules and issues, so that they can make intelligent decisions;
• to ensure the maximum right to publish freely, with minimal restriction and constraint;
• to educate and ensure that CAMH personnel understand all contractual terms of an agreement; 
• to increase the quantity and quality of research collaborations between the University and industry;
• to foster the use of CAMH technologies by companies and the creation of new companies based on those technologies;
• to generate revenues for support of CAMH research;
• to codify and clarify the policies of CAMH.

Relationship between CAMH and the University of Toronto

CAMH is one of eight teaching hospitals affiliated with the University of Toronto, which is the third largest research organization in Canada, spending at least a million dollars a day on the creation and development of knowledge. The results of that research reach the public in a variety of ways: through books, articles and lectures, through patentable and copyrightable technology, and through "know-how" shared, formally and informally, by the University's faculty members and students.

The University's eight affiliated teaching hospitals are not subject to the University's intellectual property policies. They have their own policies and make their own arrangements with respect to relations with industry and the commercialization of intellectual property. The University and hospitals do, however, have an agreement with respect to joint inventions. Under this agreement, the University and the hospitals are obliged to mutually disclose such inventions to each other and then determine, on a case-by-case basis, which institution should take responsibility for a joint invention. Any revenues are shared under a negotiated formula, which takes into consideration the circumstances of each particular case.

In general when research occurs on location at the CAMH, or using CAMH resources, then the CAMH is seen as owning the rights to the invention. If the research occurred in a facility located at the University or with University resources then the invention will generally be handled under the University Inventions Policy.

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