A conflict of interest exists when a financial or other personal consideration may compromise, or appear to compromise, the design, conduct, or reporting of research. Some requirements of this program, per federal law, are to maintain and enforce a policy on conflicts of interest, and to inform individuals of this policy. UT Dallas is responsible for knowing what conflicts might exist at the University and to manage, reduce, or eliminate those conflicts.
The Research Investigator Financial Disclosure Certification of Compliance must be completed annually by all UT Dallas faculty, principal investigators on external grants and contracts, and individuals who have a significant financial interest in an entity in which the university conducts research, development, or scholarship related business. Changes in financial interest occurring within the reporting period must be disclosed by submitting an updated Financial Disclosure form.
UT Dallas is committed to ensuring its faculty an open and productive environment in which to conduct teaching and research. The university's concern with conflict of interest reflects the ever-increasing complexity of our society, our various relations with each other and with outside institutions, along with the heightened national and governmental sensitivity to such matters. The University's full Conflict of Interest policy is located in the Faculty Handbook within the UT Dallas Policy Memoranda for Academic and Research Programs as UTDPP1029.
The Director of Research Integrity coordinates the process by which potential conflicts of interest are reviewed and managed. Under this process, researcher investigators have the opportunity to meet with a review panel to discuss the nature of their potential conflict of interest and determine the steps necessary to manage this conflict appropriately. The ultimate purpose of the meeting is to agree on a formal conflict of interest management plan that will then be implemented and monitored by the Office of Research Integrity.
