A Material Transfer Agreement (MTA) is a written contract entered into by a provider and a recipient of research material that governs the transfer of tangible research materials, data and databases, and software between two organizations. At UCLA, the UCLA Technology Development Group (UCLA TDG) reviews and approves incoming and outgoing transfer on behalf of UCLA faculty.
If the Material you are receiving from a for-profit entity or providing to a for-profit entity will be used for testing in a clinical trial on human subjects, please contact the Officer from the UCLA School of Medicine Clinical Trial, Contracts & Strategic Relations Office (CTC&SR) assigned to assist your department. UCLA TDG does not have the delegated authority to negotiate agreements with for-profit entities for clinical testing of materials.
A transfer of UCLA Material to a for-profit entity for use as or support of a commercial product or service instead of a research purpose will require special handling to protect the interests of the Principal Investigator and UCLA. Please visit the Material Transfer for Commercial Purposes section of our website for assistance.
How to Receive or Send Materials using UCLA onlineMTA
UCLA onlineMTA is a central site for submitting all requests for the receipt or transfer of materials for research purposes through a new, convenient web-based form. The onlineMTA site will also allow investigators to track the status of their pending and completed MTA requests submitted after July 1, 2009.
In addition to providing a few short details regarding the proposed transfer, you can upload any contract or other documentation provided by the party sending the material, as well as the requisite financial disclosure forms or other required administrative approvals.
Who is Managing Your Material Transfer Request?
Our primary focus upon receipt of your material transfer request is to expedite review, negotiation and execution of the contract to facilitate the transfer. Our practice is “first-in, first-out” to make sure substantive action is taken on your material transfer request within one business day of assignment to a member of the UCLA TDG team.
The Principal Investigator will receive an email notification identifying the individual on the UCLA TDG team assigned to your material transfer request and if at any point there are questions and you are not sure who to contact, you can contact UCLAMTA@tdg.ucla.edu.
What Are the Types of Material Transfer Agreements
Material Transfer Between Academic Institutions
When academic researchers receive requests from colleagues for samples of research materials. Agency sponsors (primarily NIH) often require that research materials generated from funded research are made available to other researchers. To comply with federal sponsors' desire for easy access to research materials, the Uniform Biological Material Transfer Agreement (UBMTA) was developed. The UBMTA provides a record of the material transfer, and prohibits the recipient from transferring the material to others without the written consent of the material provider.
Material Transfer from Industry to UCLA
When a researcher at UCLA requires materials from a company. Academic researchers may seek industrial materials for their research, which will always be accompanied by an MTA. Because industry frequently has substantial investments and revenues at stake, an industrial MTA is usually more restrictive than a UBMTA.
MTA's from industry often contain restrictive language in the areas of publication, patent rights, and licensing. Often, companies want the right to block or edit the right of the UCLA Principal Investigator to publish, which contradicts the concept of academic freedom.
In the area of intellectual property, the company often wishes to own all rights - title and interest - to inventions arising from the use of the material; a position not acceptable to the University.
In the area of licensing, companies may ask for a royalty-free, exclusive or non-exclusive, license to our future patent rights giving us no incentive to file any patents on the work done with their material.
In short, many of these agreements contain language that must be negotiated!
Material Transfer from UCLA to Industry
When companies request a research material from UCLA. Companies often request samples of research material. These requests are handled in a few different ways, depending on the following: the material is not patentable, the material is currently patented by UCLA, or the material is not yet patented (or publicly disclosed) and is of possible commercial value. These types of transfer are handled on a case-by-case basis.