Connecting with Companies: A Guide to Consulting Agreements for Biomedical Scientists

Academic scientists often find it challenging to negotiate consulting agreements with biotechnology or pharmaceutical companies. The legal language can be confusing, anxieties can occur on both sides, specifics concerning stock shares and options can be obscure, and there are pitfalls aplenty, yet raising objections or making counterproposals may feel awkward and potentially risky. This book is an essential guide for academic scientists and physicians considering consulting work in biomedicine. The authors, a seasoned attorney and a Nobel Prize-winning scientist, have extensive experience in reviewing and negotiating consulting agreements. In an accessible style, they guide scientists through key contractual issues, including intellectual property management, confidentiality, fees, indemnity, and stock options and classes, as well as the laws such agreements must satisfy.

As the science of biomedicine continues to skyrocket, biomedical consulting has become an attractive option for a wider range of career stages. This is the most authoritative and practically useful handbook available to any scientist considering this important step in career advancement.