DESCA (Development of a Simplified Consortium Agreement) is a comprehensive Model Consortium Agreement which offers a reliable frame of reference for project consortia. DESCA enjoys broad support within the FP community.

The signature of a Consortium Agreement between the partners of a research project is mandatory for almost every FP7 project. The European Commission offers general guidance for the drafting of consortium agreements but no specific model agreement. Initiated by key FP7 stakeholder groups, and co-developed with the FP community, this initiative seeks to balance the interests of all participant categories: large and small firms, universities, public research institutes and RTOs, in the spirit of the Responsible Partnering Initiative (www.responsible-partnering.org).

DESCA is a simple and comprehensive model Consortium Agreement, stripped of all unecessary complexity in both content and language. The modular structure of DESCA, with various options and alternative modules and clauses, provides maximum flexibility. Great care has gone into making sure that these variants remain consistent with the core text. Elucidation notes with concrete examples and detailed explanations about the various options and clauses are provided throughout the model. These notes will help research managers without legal training and first-time FP7 participants make informed choices about the best wording to protect their interests.

The DESCA model consortium agreement was specifically designed for FP7 collaborative projects.