Frequently Asked Questions & Frequently Requested Information

Frequently Asked Questions

Whom does the Office of University Counsel represent?  The Office of University Counsel represents the University as an institution.  While determined on case by case consideration, attorneys in the Office of University Counsel advise and represent University employees who are acting within the scope of their University employment in matters concerning institutional business.  Attorneys in the Office of University Counsel do not represent employees in their personal/individual legal matters.

Who are the attorneys who are authorized to represent the University in its legal matters? The only attorneys authorized to represent the University are those who work in the Office of University Counsel at 378 Columbus Place and those hired by the Office of University Counsel to handle/respond to certain specialty matters.  The Office of University Counsel attorneys are Vincent Lembo, Lisa Sinclair, Janet Faulkner, Matt McIntyre, Deanna Jantzen and Jigisha Patel.  Information about the areas in which each attorney practices can be located on this website under Frequently Requested Information, Office of University Counsel Subject Areas/Resources.

What should I do if I receive a letter, e-mail, call or other contact from an attorney outside the University?  You must immediately refer all such contact to the Office of University Counsel at x2157.  If you receive written communication, the letter or other document should be delivered to our office at 378 CP.

What should I do if an agency investigator, private detective, or process server contacts me?  You must refer all such contact to the Office of University Counsel at x2157.  The Office of University Counsel is the registered agent for service of all legal documents for the University.  Therefore, you are not authorized and cannot accept service on behalf of the University.  Further information on this topic is found on this website under Frequently Requested Information, Federal and State Agency Inspections, Service of Process and Subpoenas, and Background Checks. 

I have a student who appears to need legal representation in a personal matter.  Can you represent the student?    No.  The University is unable to provide individual legal representation to students.  However, our office does maintain contact information for lawyer referral and legal aid services that may be helpful to students seeking legal representation.  Please contact our office at x2157 for such information.

Can my department hire outside counsel?   No. The hiring of outside counsel for all Northeastern University matters is done exclusively by the Office of University Counsel.  There will be an University Counsel attorney who is assigned to manage/oversee any legal matter involving University representation by outside counsel.  If your department has a potential legal matter or concern, please contact our office at x2157 for advice and guidance.

Who can sign contracts on behalf of the University?  Signature authority on behalf of the University is limited to a few individuals.  The Board of Trustees of the University has designated signature authority to the University's President, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, Senior Vice President for Administration and Finance, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, and Treasurer.  The Board of Trustees has granted these individuals permission to delegate signature authority to certain other University officials under limited circumstances.  No other persons at the University may sign contracts on behalf of the University.

Could I be personally liable if I sign a contract and I am not one of the University's authorized signatories? Yes.  Personal liability can include all costs and expenses associated with the contract, including attorneys' fees. 

How can I receive assistance with the review or negotiation of a contract?  All contracts must be reviewed by the Office of University Counsel prior to signature by an authorized University official.  All questions regarding contract review or negotiation should be directed to the Office of the University Counsel's transactional attorney, Matt McIntyre at x2157.  Additional information about the University's Contract Review Policy can also be found on this webpage under Frequently Requested Information.

Are there any insurance requirements for either holding an event my department wants to sponsor on campus or organizing an event off campus?  Yes.  Any and all questions about insurance should be directed to Brian Burns, Director of Institutional Audit, Compliance and Risk Services, x8668.

I received a letter seeking University records under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).  Do I respond with the requested records?  No.  Northeastern University is a private institution.  FOIA applies only to public institutions.  Therefore, no University records may be provided in response to such a request.  You should forward the FOIA request to the OUC, which will issue a standard response to such an inquiry.

Are there any rules or policies regarding the privacy of student record information?  Yes.  The privacy of student educational record information is protected by Federal law and University policy.  The applicable Federal law is the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), sometimes also referred to as the Buckley Amendment or the student records law.  The University's FERPA policy can be found in the Undergraduate Student Handbook, the Graduate Student Handbook, and on the Office of the Registrar's webpage at http://www.northeastern.edu/registrar/ferpa.html.  If you have any questions about FERPA, you can contact the Office of the Registrar at x2300 and/or the OUC at x2157.

 

Frequently Requested Information

Charitable Giving Measures Impacting Colleges and Universities

For information on how recent federal legislation has impacted charitable giving, please see http://www.nacua.org/nacualert/docs/Pension.asp.

Compliance / Risk Management

For information on insurance, releases, waivers of liability, conflicts on interest, and risk management, please contact Brian Burns, Director of Institutional Audit, Compliance & Risk Services at x8668.

Contracts

The University Counsel’s Office reviews the form of all contracts and agreements to which the University is a party prior to signature.  Our office can provide model agreement templates for departments, and is available to assist departments in negotiating agreements.  For information and questions about contracts, please contact Matt McIntyre.

See Form section for contract templates, template releases/waivers and template contract language.  For our Contract Review Policy, click here.

Creative Projects

For assistance with issues related to photo, video, or other creative or multimedia projects, please consult the Photo /Video toolkit.

Email and Electronic Discovery

Be careful What You Put In Writing...

Question: I've heard that e-mail may be used as evidence in a lawsuit; is e-mail subject to discovery in litigation?

Answer: Yes. In litigation, e-mail is a discoverable form of communication. Some people treat e-mail as if it were casual, oral communication, the kind of discussion they might have with a good friend. However, while oral communications go away, except as may be preserved in one's memory, e-mails do not. E-mails get saved, copied, printed, forwarded, filed, and even when deleted by you, may be archived elsewhere or may have been kept by the party with whom you're communicating. And when printed, e-mails look like memos or letters.

Therefore, it's important to keep in mind that what you write may some day be evidence. Utilize the same thought and care in e-mail communication that you use in other forms of business and professional communication.

Export Controls

Northeastern University engages in research and educational activities that may involve the development or use of products, goods, hardware, software, materials or technology that may be subject to U.S. export control laws and regulations.  The U.S. Government increasingly is focused on the compliance of universities with these laws and regulations.  Northeastern is committed to complying with all applicable export controls, as established by the applicable federal regulations.  It is critical that everyone in the Northeastern community understands the rules and complies with them fully.  See the University's Research website for more information at http://www.northeastern.edu/research/ExportControl/.  The Office of the University Counsel works closely with Research Administration in this area; please contact Matt McIntyre with any questions for further information.

Federal and State Agency Inspections

Question: A state inspector stopped by my work area and asked what chemicals I work with and where they are stored. Should I have given the inspector the information?

Answer: Regulatory agencies conduct a number of routine inspections at our facilities but MUST be accompanied by and administrative representative of the University who has thorough knowledge of the program being inspected or audited. For example, an inspector from Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) or the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) may request to visit research laboratories selected at random to determine if the University has implemented safe work practices with chemicals or is properly storing hazardous materials. In this case, the inspector would need to first meet with a representative of the Northeastern University Environmental Health and Safety (EH&S) Office to identify the purpose of the visit and request permission to visit any work area. As part of implementing the University safety policy, unauthorized visitors must be immediately asked to leave the work area, especially an area where hazardous materials are stored or used.

Inspectors have the right of entry to inspect in most cases, as determined by applicable occupational or environmental regulatory statute. Northeastern University will always fully cooperate with official inspections and the EH&S representative will escort the inspector. The EH&S representative will arrange for access to restricted areas as needed and will be able to provide additional information on safety programs implemented for that work site and answer any questions the inspector may have. So, as in the instance you describe in your question above, should any unauthorized visitor or inspector come to your work site, contact your supervisor who then must contact immediately the appropriate University administrator and the University's Environmental Health and Safety Office.

For further information on how NU fulfills its obligations to be in compliance with all occupational health, safety, and environmental rules and regulations, please visit the Office of Environmental Health and Safety at http://www.ehs.neu.edu/index.php. 

FERPA and Privacy Issues

FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) protects students' privacy in their "education records", broadly defined as "those records, files, documents, and other information directly related to a student and which are maintained by an educational...institution or by a person acting for such...institution". 20 U.S.C. Section 1232g(a)(4)(A).

  • Posting Class Rosters

Question: Are there any FERPA problems  raised by computer-posting a class list for students, containing phone numbers and e-mail addresses?

Answer: If you intend to create an accessible computer-based class roster including such information as students address, telephone numbers and/or e-mail addresses, you must advise the students of your plan in your syllabus. And students must have an opportunity to fully participate without disclosing the requested information. While you may be well-intended, just trying to provide a convenience for your students, acting without consent in this type of scenario may put you in violation of FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act)

So-called "directory information", however, can be released without violating the protections of FERPA. FERPA defines "directory information" as "information contained in an education record that would generally not be considered harmful or an invasion of privacy if disclosed, including but not limited to, the student's name, address, telephone listing, electronic mail address, photograph, date and place of birth, major field of study, dates of attendance, grade level, enrollment status, participation in officially recognized activities and sports, weight and height of members of athletic teams, degrees, honors and awards received and the most recent educational agency or institution attended". 20 U.S.C. Section 1232g(a)(5)(A); 34 C.F.R. Section 99.3. The University may disclose directory information where it has given public notice to students and the types of information it has designated as directory information and provided the student with the opportunity to opt out of having any or all of those types of information disclosed as directory information and the student has not opted out. 34 C.F.R. Section 99.37.

Northeastern University has designated only the following as directory information: Full name, date of birth, major field of study, dates of attendance, class year, degrees and awards received, most recent previous educational institution attended, participation in formerly recognized University athletics, weight and height of members of athletic teams, participation in officially recognized University activities and student organizations. The University's designation of what constitutes directory information is published in the Northeastern University Undergraduate Student Handbook. Note that the University's designation does not include address, telephone listing, photograph or electronic mail address. Therefore, if you want to post such information, obtaining a written in-advance go ahead from your students is the prudent approach.

For information about how Northeastern implements FERPA, see http://www.neu.edu/registrar/ferpa.html.

HIPAA

HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) protects protected health information that is maintained and transmitted electronically.  HIPAA requires administrative, technical and physical safeguards for storage, transmission, and access. 

University’s HIPAA Security Officer: Mark Nardone, Director InformationSecurity

University’s HIPAA Privacy Officer: Nan Clark Regina, Director, Division Human Subject Research Protection

Intellectual Property/Copyright Issues

University Copyright Officer: Gerald Herman, Asst. Professor and Special Asst. to University Counsel.

Logo and Name Use

For information about use of Northeastern’s name and logo, visit the Division of Marketing and Communications Branding Toolkit at http://www.northeastern.edu/toolkit/overview.html.

Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDA)

You may be presented with or want to enter into a non-disclosure or confidentiality agreement for a variety of reasons and situations.  As a general rule, if you are acting in your capacity as a Northeastern employee, you should not sign such an agreement.  It must be processed through the Office of the University Counsel and signed by an authorized University signatory.  If the non-disclosure agreement involves research or potential cooperation with any party in the field of research, such an agreement should be processed through the Office of Research Administration and Finance instead.  Please contact the Office of the University Counsel's Office with any questions.

Service of Process and of Subpoenas

From time to time, University personnel are asked to accept official legal documents such as subpoenas or summonses. Notices are sometimes addressed to the University itself, to individually named officials of the University, or to individual members of the University community. In some instances, legal notices are received by mail; in other instances, they may be hand-delivered by a "process server" (such as a constable or deputy sheriff).

The Counsel’s Office is the registered agent for Northeastern University, meaning that all subpoenas must be served on the Counsel and may not be directed to any other department.

The Office of the University Counsel is the only department in the University which is authorized to accept service of civil subpoenas for the University.  (The University's Department of Public Safety may accept subpoenas for criminal matters in which Department is involved.)  Our Office is the University's registered agent on file in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' Secretary of State's office.  Subpoenas delivered to any other department will be treated as invalid.

The University accepts subpoenas which are served in accordance with the Court rules which apply in Massachusetts.  Transmittal of subpoenas by fax or email is not acceptable.  If you have any questions about serving a subpoena at the University, please contact our office at 617-373-2157.

A subpoena is an official court document that requires the recipient to appear in court, and often to produce documents. If you are served with a subpoena, please inform the server that you are not authorized to receive it and ask that they bring it directly to the University Counsel’s Office. This is extremely important. Please do not try to execute the subpoena’s request on your own, even if the request seems simple and straightforward, as it may have serious legal consequences for the University.  If you are asked to accept service of a summons or subpoena addressed to the University or an individual other than yourself, refer the process server to the Office of University Counsel (378 Columbus Place), which will determine whether it can be accepted by the University.

Once the University Counsel receives the subpoena, we may ask your department to produce certain records or other information requested in the subpoena. Generally, the Registrar’s Office facilitates this process, and may also ask you for documents. We ask that you please cooperate with the Registrar’s Office and respond quickly to their needs. If you have any questions about requests, please feel free to contact our office.

If you are contacted by an attorney, please refer that attorney to the Office of University Counsel.

Background Checks

In addition to persons serving subpoenas, you may also be approached by someone who is looking for private information about a student or an employee or who wants to perform a background check. Please be advised that anyone requesting these items should be directed to the Counsel’s Office. It is imperative that we check an individual’s credentials before providing him or her with confidential documents.