C.4 Legal Agreements in Horizon Europe

This course gives insight to the formal agreements related to Horizon Europe projects. This is essential information not only for coordinators of Horizon Europe projects, but equally important for the project partners. We will go through the formal contract with the European Commission; the Grant Agreement (GA). We will also go through other important documents and agreements that you need, such as the Consortium Agreement (CA) between the project partners and also other useful documents such as the Non-disclosure Agreement, Subcontracting Agreements, Joint Ownership Agreements and Letters of Commitment. There will be a step-by-step introduction to DESCA CA model agreement covering both the standard and lump sum articles.

During the workshop the participants will go through possible challenges that can occur in a project, and how this can be handled or even prevented with the help of Consortium Agreement.

Agenda

08:30–09:00 Arrival of participants 

09:00–09:15 Event Opening      

09:15–10:30 Grant Agreement Preparation and Amendments in Horizon Europe

Step by step introduction to the Grant Agreement preparation system from receiving the Invitation to GAP letter for your Horizon Europe proposal till the signature of your Grant Agreement. Differences in lump sum projects will be covered. 

• Invitation to GAP letter
• Result of the ethics review or security scrutiny
• How to handle the requests of your Project Officer
• How to enter and submit your Grant Data
• Declaration of Honour and the Accession Form
• Preparing the Description of the Action (DoA)
• Signature of the GA
• GA amendments - when a GA amendment is not needed

(10:30–10:45 Coffee Break)

10:45–11:15 Formal and Informal Arrangements among HE Beneficiaries 

Pre-submission stage and implementation phase agreements: Letters of Intent (LoI), Letters of Commitment (LoC), Memoranda of Understanding (MoU), Non-disclosure Agreements (NDA), Affiliated Entity Agreement, Subcontracting agreement, Licencing Agreement, Joint Ownership Agreement. 

(11:15–11:30 Coffee  break)

11:30–12:15 How to draw up an Effective Consortium Agreement – Part 1

What to include? Who should prepare a CA? What model agreements are available? Making a comparison between the GA and the CA

(12:15–13:00 Lunch Break)

13:00–13:45 How to draw up an Effective Consortium Agreement – Part 2

Step-by-step introduction to the DESCA Model Consortium Agreement (LS and standard) and examples of Consortium Agreements for different types of actions. Decision making procedures and management structures. Financial clauses, budget distribution and management. Defining Background, Results and IPR issues. Risk management and conflict resolution mechanisms. 

(13:45–14:00 Coffee Break)

14:00–15:00 Workshop: Consortium Agreement Case Studies

Under the moderation of trainers, participants will work on real-life scenarios with problematic and challenging situations in R&I projects:

• Conflicts on exploitation and intellectual property rights (IPR) issues;
• Disagreements on dissemination and scientific publications;
• Delays and quality problems in deliverables;
• Overspending and underperforming partners;
• Inadequate budget allocations and budget reallocations; etc.

--- 

About the Horizon Europe courses 

The Research Council of Norway offers a structured series of courses for applicants to Horizon Europe. The courses are organised by topic, project role, and level of experience.  

Introductory courses (Series A and E) are digital and suitable for all roles, while Series B, C, and D are in-person, role-specific courses that typically run over one or two days. 

C. Project Management

Courses in the C-series are suitable for Project Managers and Advisors responsible for planning and implementing Horizon Europe projects.  

C.1 Research and Innovation Project Management: the first steps 
C.2 Coordinating a Horizon Europe Project – special course for Coordinators 
C.3 Horizon Europe Project Management and Reporting 
C.4 Legal Agreements in Horizon Europe