The flowchart below is meant to assist you with deciding the appropriate office that can support the review and negotiation of service contracts. A service contract is a document between a service provider and a client, where the service provider agrees to provide certain services to a client. Depending on the situation, McMaster University will either be the service provider or the client.
Within these service contracts, the service provider and client will outline their expectations and agree to the terms and conditions of the service contract.
The research contract unit at MILO is responsible for administering research contracts from any source (government, industry, not-for-profit, etc.) so long as it involves a research element. *Research element for the purposes of this document means work that is collaborative in nature, intellectual property may be shared, research results may be used for further research purposes, publication is anticipated, and funds will be deposited into a research account.
For more information: MILO
The Office of Legal Services provides assistance with the review and negotiation of services agreements when an employee/department provides a service for a fee and provides the results to a client where no intellectual input or value-added is provided by McMaster University and no publishable results are expected. Any fees paid to McMaster University for services rendered will be deposited into an operating account. For any services provided by McMaster University, the McMaster University Contract for Providing Services template should be used.
For more information: OLS
Purchasing within strategic procurement manages and negotiates purchases (including services acquired by employees and departments) on behalf of McMaster University.
For more information: Purchasing Resources