Institute sees profit splits ending research suits

By Daniel Connolly | Commercial Appeal | Friday, November 10, 2006

Dick Tarr faces a challenge: He's trying to bring together public and private institutions to make discoveries in orthopedics, an area where lawsuits over inventions are common.

Tarr, who is shepherding a research group called the InMotion Musculoskeletal Institute through its first year, said a key to its success will be finding a way to head off lawsuits and divide any profits from inventions that emerge from its yet-to-open research labs.

"We want to make sure that everyone who's been involved shares (profits)," he said.

He said heading off intellectual property disputes will encourage collaboration, drive research forward, and help Memphis become the world's leader in orthopedics, the study of how to treat problems such as arthritis and broken bones.

Research will bolster the city's already large medical device industry, create high-paying jobs and improve the region's economy, said Tarr, who addressed a Memphis Regional Chamber luncheon Thursday at the Holiday Inn at the University of Memphis.

The nonprofit institute incorporated this year and is backed with several grants, the largest being $3.1 million from the Plough Foundation. At the moment its only employees are Tarr and two other people, but the group plans to grow to a staff of 20 over the next several months, he said.

Leading the group's research will be three scientists who will split their time between research and other work. InMotion would pay half of their salaries. The Campbell Clinic, a major orthopedic group, will pay half the salaries for two physicians who would see patients part-time at the clinic. The University of Memphis would pick up remaining costs for the third researcher, who would teach part-time at the university.

The group plans to have the researchers and other institutions sign agreements in advance of the start of their research. InMotion would also hire lawyers to gain patents for any inventions that result, Tarr said.

The institute could then commercialize the inventions through spinoff companies or licensing agreements. When money came in, all institutions and people involved would receive a cut, he said.

Among those listening to Tarr's talk was Steve Cohen, a longtime Democratic state senator who Tuesday night was elected to represent Memphis in the U.S. House of Representatives.

After the luncheon, Cohen spoke with Steve Bares, president and executive director of the Memphis Bioworks Foundation, a group dedicated to promoting science-based industry in Memphis, about ways he could help support research from Washington and help the city attract more highly skilled workers.