7.0 Policy Governing Conflict of Interest and Conflict of Commitment

This policy sets forth procedures and guidelines to be followed in resolving actual and potential faculty conflicts of interest and commitment pertaining to externally sponsored projects or activities. This policy responds to both US federal policy governing sponsored programs administration and to AUS policies.

This policy applies to all external projects—whether funded by commercial sponsors, US federal agencies with conflict of interest requirements, private foundations, international donor agencies or GCC businesses and other entities. It also applies to purchase orders and subcontracts issued by AUS regardless of the source of funds.

AUS and faculty benefit from faculty participation in outside public and private activities. AUS has no interest in regulating faculty members’ legitimate, personal outside interests.

However, faculty members must ensure their outside obligations, financial interests and activities do not violate UAE immigration law or conflict or interfere with their commitments to AUS. This obligation pertains to both full-time and part-time faculty.

Conflicts of interest are defined as:

Situations in which faculty members may have the opportunity to influence AUS’s business decisions in ways that could lead to personal gain or give improper advantage to themselves, members of their families or to associates.

Conflicts of commitment are defined as:

Situations in which faculty members’ external activities interfere or appear to interfere with their primary obligations to their students, colleagues and AUS.

When the university engages in or intends to engage in an external project with a commercial organization, or has sub contracted or intends to subcontract to an external organization under an external subcontract, a conflict of interest may occur when a faculty member’s affiliation with the external organization meets any one of the following criteria:

• The faculty member is an officer, director, partner, trustee, employee, advisory board member or agent of an external organization or corporation either funding a sponsored project or providing goods and services under a sponsored project on which the faculty member is participating in any capacity.
• The faculty member is the actual or beneficial owner of voting stock or controlling interest of such organization or corporation.
• The faculty member has dealings with such organization or corporation from which he or she derives income, exclusive of dividends and interest.
• The faculty member’s immediate family (spouse, children and dependents) meet any of the criteria stated above.

Each faculty member participating in a sponsored project covered by this policy must disclose whether or not he/she has external affiliations that may constitute a conflict by falling within the criteria stated above.

7.1 Guidelines for Identifying Potential Conflicts of Interest

The following examples can serve as guidelines for helping identify potential conflicts of interest and commitment that should be disclosed. It is not a comprehensive list of all potential situations that could present faculty members and AUS with difficulty.

Activities clearly permissible (do not have to be disclosed):

• Royalties for published scholarly works and other writings
• Honoraria for commissioned papers and occasional lectures
• Royalties under institutional royalty sharing policies
• Prizes and royalties from past and previously disclosed activities
• Service on boards and committees of organizations, public or private, that does not distract from the faculty member’s obligations to AUS or that does not interfere or appear to interfere with a faculty member’s objectivity
• Reasonable travel and lodging expenses related to presentations of scholarly work
• Investments in mutual funds

Activities that present potential for conflict and should be disclosed:

• Relationships that might enable a faculty member to influence AUS’s dealings with an outside organization in ways leading to personal gain or improper advantage for the faculty member or his/her associates or family members. (For example, a faculty member or family member could have a financial interest in an organization with which the university does business and could be in a position to influence relevant business decisions. Ordinarily, making full disclosure of such relationships and making appropriate arrangements to mitigate potential conflicts would resolve such problems.)
• Situations in which the time and creative energy a faculty member may devote to external activities appear substantial enough to compromise the amount or quality of his or her participation in the instructional, scholarly or administrative work of AUS.
• Situations in which a faculty member directs students into research areas from which the faculty member may realize a financial gain.

Activities that may present unacceptable conflicts and should be disclosed:

• Situations in which a faculty member assumes executive responsibilities for an outside organization that might seriously divert his or her attention from university duties. Faculty members should consult with the appropriate dean before accepting any outside management position.
• Use for personal profit of unpublished information from sponsored agreements or confidential university sources, or assisting an outside organization by giving it exclusive access to such information, or consulting with outside organizations that impose obligations upon the faculty member or the university that conflict with the faculty member’s or university’s Intellectual Property Policy or with the university’s obligations under sponsored projects.
• Circumstances in which a substantial body of research that could and ordinarily would be carried on within the university is conducted elsewhere to the detriment of the university and its legitimate interests.
• Any activity a faculty member undertakes as an individual that (1) involves or appears to involve the university significantly through the use of its resources, facilities or the participation of academic colleagues, students and staff; and (2) involves use of the university’s name or implied endorsement.

7.2 The Disclosure Process

Individuals are required to submit disclosure statement forms annually. Also, updated disclosure statement forms must be completed and submitted prior to AUS’s acceptance of an external project or issuance of a purchase order or subcontract for goods and services.
The Conflict of Interest Form should be sent to the Office of Research.