Policy Statement
The policy seeks to establish a Malaysian Agricultural Research & Development Institute (MARDI) internal guideline for the proper management of her Intellectual Property Rights (IPR). It is to encourage high quality and creative research works in the development of inventions and innovations, and eventual transfer of technology. All intellectual properties arising from employees of MARDI belong to MARDI.

Interpretation
In this Policy, “creator” means person who is an inventor, author or breeder, “employee” means a person who works or has worked under a contract of employment, or who is in employment under, or for the purposes of MARDI including persons on attachment training and persons on collaborative research.

Objective
The objective of this policy is to ensure that all the MARDI’s intellectual property activities are conducted according to her core mandate and business strategy in order to bring optimum results for MARDI and its employees.

Intellectual Property
For the purpose of this policy, ‘intellectual property’ is taken to mean information, ideas, inventions, innovations, art work, designs, literary text and other matters or things whatsoever as may be capable of legal protection or the subject of legal rights in any of the ways set out in this Policy and includes the following rights recognised by Malaysian and/or foreign law:

• Statutory rights under the following Acts and their respective Regulations:
  • Computer Crimes Act 1997,
  • Copyrights Act 1989,
  • Digital Signature Act 1997,
  • Industrial Designs Act 1996,
  • Patents Act 1983,
  • Protection of New Plants Varieties Act 2004,
  • Trade Marks Act 1976,
  • and any other relevant Acts.
• Rights out of contractual obligations;
  • Biological resources owned or in possession that are not subjected to any third party claim including genetic resources which refer to plants, animals, micro-organisms, cells, genes or part thereof, populations, or any other biotic components of the ecosystem with actual or potential use or value to humanity.
  • Materials gained from any Material Transfer Agreement; i.e. contract or an agreement involving the provision of biological materials in exchange for monetary or non-monetary benefit.
  • Trade secrets and information which is subject to an employee’s duty of fidelity to MARDI.
  • Unregistered trademarks used or intended for use in business.
• Human Resource;
  • Tacit knowledge of the employees of MARDI.
  • Other rights resulting from intellectual activity in the scientific, industrial, commercial, literary and artistic fields.

Ownership

• Claim of Ownership
  • Subject to further provision of this Policy, MARDI is the owner of all intellectual property in the following situations:
    • Intellectual property created by an employee of MARDI in the course of employment by MARDI including in the course of the employees’ studies whether paid or not by MARDI.
    • Creation of intellectual property which has been jointly collaborated by MARDI or by any third party either on behalf of MARDI or by virtue of an agreement with MARDI by the provision of resources, facilities, apparatus, supervision, salary or other funding.