Open Science: a legal perspective

Supported by FOSB-infrastructure funds, APM and INBO joined forces to consult the expertise of the Timelex law firm. The main aim of this venture was to expand the available knowledge on intellectual property and data protection, versus open science, in the specific case of Natural Science research at governmental institutes. Objectives were (1) To collect frequently asked questions (FAQs) on these topics, (2) To provide a report customized to the institutes’ needs, (3) To create tools that help the researchers apply this knowledge and (4) To raise overall knowledge and awareness of researchers and supporting staff.

At the beginning of the collaboration (June 2024), a start event was held at both institutes. The collaboration was explained and researchers could directly engage with the Timelex lawyers, either on three previously prepared use-cases or by posing questions on new use-cases. After these events, the researchers could also submit further questions through a questionnaire.

The Timelex lawyers, steered by feedback of the APM & INBO data stewards, wrote a report in which they explained the theory of the legal frameworks in layman's terms, complemented with a list of resolved “FAQs”.

Based on this report, the data stewards are proposing microchanges for the institutes’ management and are creating two tools to be included in their project writing procedures: a personal data decision tree and an intellectual property checklist.

A closing event is planned at both institutes in June 2025 to both share the results of the collaboration and hold a related workshop.