About the Office of the General Counsel
Doing Business Online
- What is email spam and how is it regulated? (Login required)
- How do I determine if my email I send on Harvard business must comply with the requirements of the CAN-SPAM Act? (Login required)
- How do I determine what the "primary purpose" of my email is? (Login required)
- What do I need to do if my email is "commercial"? (Login required)
- What do I need to do if my email is a "transactional or relationship" message? (Login required)
- What are the penalties for noncompliance? (Login required)
- What is an electronic signature? (Login required)
- If a signature is required on a document, is an electronic signature acceptable?(Login required)
- Are there documents that cannot be signed electronically? (Login required)
- If my office requires certain documents to be notarized when submitted to Harvard, can we accept a notary signature that has been signed electronically? (Login required)
- Can my Harvard School or department accept an electronic signature for the release of educational records under FERPA? (Login required)
- If my Harvard school or department wishes to encourage agreements to be signed electronically, such as agreements provided to users over a website, what steps should be taken to effectuate this choice and comply with law? (Login required)
- There are companies that offer services for obtaining and maintaining electronic signatures, can I use such services? (Login required)
Employment
- When may an individual appropriately be classified as a trainee or unpaid intern? (Login required)
- When may an individual appropriately be classified as a volunteer? (Login required)
- May Harvard employees donate volunteer services to the university? (Login required)
- May a volunteer be paid a stipend? (Login required)
- Is there any problem with hiring employees to work outside of Massachusetts or with leasing space outside of Massachusetts? (Login required)
- Waiver Requirements For Group Layoffs Under The Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (Login required)
- Are student employees covered by the Massachusetts earned sick time law? (Login required)
Event Planning
- In what situations should you seek a release from a speaker or a presenter? (Login required)
- Can Harvard pay an honorarium or travel expenses to an individual traveling on a diplomatic visa? (Login required)
- What are the state laws that apply to gaming night fundraisers for Harvard or student groups? (Login required)
- How can Harvard or a student group hold a raffle as a fundraiser? (Login required)
- May my Harvard department, unit, or school hold an auction to raise money for a charity without first securing a permit? (Login required)
Governance
- How is Harvard organized? (Login required)
- Where is the Harvard Seal? (Login required)
- What is Harvard Management Company, and what does it do? (Login required)
- Is Harvard permitted to engage in lobbying activities? (Login required)
- Are the Harvard Clubs that operate in cities all over the world part of Harvard University? (Login required)
- If my department receives a request under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for Harvard documents, must it comply? (Login required)
Minors
Privacy and Copyright
For additional information regarding copyright, see “Copyright and Fair Use: A Guide for the Harvard Community.”
- May I publish a person's photograph without permission? (Login required)
- Does it matter whether the publication is in print or on the web? (Login required)
- Does it matter if the person photographed is famous? (Login required)
- Who owns the copyright in a photograph taken for a Harvard publication? (Login required)
- Do I need permission to reprint a photograph that was previously published in another Harvard publication? (Login required)
- Do I need permission to reprint a photograph from a non-Harvard publication? (Login required)
- Do I need permission to show a film in a class? (Login required)
- Do I need permission to show a film at an event? (Login required)
- If I plan to videotape a course, do I need permission from students in order to include them in the video? (Login required)
- The publisher of my academic article requires that I obtain a waiver of Harvard's Open Access Policy. How do I obtain this waiver? (Login required)
Real Estate
- What is needed if one academic department wishes to "rent" space to another Harvard department? (Login required)
Research
- Are there any university policies that affect a faculty member's ability to engage in independent, commercial or other outside activities such as consulting? (Login required)
- What legal issues should a faculty member consider before engaging in consulting and other outside activities? (Login required)
- What are the export-control laws? (Login required)
- What is the "fundamental research exemption" to the export-control laws? (Login required)
- What are the penalties for violating the export-control laws? (Login required)
- What do the Freedom of Information Act and the Shelby Amendment have to do with my research? (Login required)
- What happens when a federal agency receives a FOIA request for a Harvard grant? (Login required)
- What happens when a federal agency receives a Shelby Amendment request relating to a Harvard grant? (Login required)
- What should I do if I get a FOIA request letter or Shelby Amendment request letter? (Login required)
- What kind of information can be withheld under FOIA? (Login required)
- What data does the Shelby Amendment cover? (Login required)
- Is Harvard subject to state-based public records requirements? (Login required)
- If I collaborate with a faculty member at a public university does this make my work and/or correspondence subject to state public records law? (Login required)
Student Records
- What is FERPA? (Login required)
- What are education records? (Login required)
- Who is a student? (Login required)
- Are application materials “education records” under FERPA? (Login required)
- Who is a school official? (Login required)
- What is directory information? (Login required)
- When may Harvard disclose personally identifiable information from a student’s education records? (Login required)
- When may Harvard disclose personally identifiable information about a student without consent? (What are the FERPA exceptions?) (Login required)
- May students inspect and review confidential letters and statements of recommendation that are included in their education records? (Login required)
- Does it matter for the purposes of FERPA that a student at the College is not yet 18? (Login required)
- Is it possible to assert FERPA rights on behalf of a deceased student? (Login required)
Taxes
- When is imputed interest due on a loan? (Login required)
- Is Harvard exempt from all federal income taxation? (Login required)
- Do Massachusetts sales taxes apply to sales to Harvard? (Login required)
- When is Harvard real estate and personal property tax exempt? (Login required)