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3.3.2012 Official
Journal
of
the
European
Union L
64/13
DECISIONS
COMMISSION DECISION
of 29 February 2012
setting up the Common Language Resources and Technology Infrastructure as a European Research
Infrastructure Consortium (CLARIN ERIC)
(notified under document C(2012) 1018)
(2012/136/EU)
THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,
(3) The
Commission
has,
in
accordance
with
Article
5(2)
of
Regulation (EC) No 723/2009, assessed the application
Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European
and concluded that it meets the requirements set out in
Union,
that Regulation.
Having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 723/2009 of
(4) The
measures
provided
for
in
this
Decision
are
in
25 June 2009 on the Community legal framework for a
accordance with the opinion of the Committee set up
European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC) (
under Article 20 of Regulation (EC) No 723/2009,

1 ), and in
particular Article 6(1)(a) thereof,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
Whereas:
Article 1
(1) On
23
September
2011
the
Czech
Republic,
Denmark, 1. A
European
Research
Infrastructure
Consortium
for
the
Germany, Estonia, the Dutch Language Union, Austria
Common Language Resources and Technology Infrastructure
and the Netherlands requested the Commission to set
named CLARIN ERIC is hereby established.
up the Common Language Resources and Technology
Infrastructure as a European Research Infrastructure
2. The
Statutes
of
CLARIN
ERIC
as
agreed
between
its
Consortium (hereinafter ‘CLARIN ERIC’).
members, are annexed to this Decision.
(2) The
Netherlands
has
provided
a
declaration
recognising
Article 2
CLARIN ERIC as an international body within the
This Decision is addressed to the Member States.
meaning of Article 143(1)(g) and Article 151(1)(b) of
Council Directive 2006/112/EC of 28 November 2006
on the common system of value added tax ( 2 ) and an
international organisation within the meaning of the
Done at Brussels, 29 February 2012.
second indent of Article 23(1) of Council Directive
92/12/EEC of 25 February 1992 on the general
For the Commission
arrangements for products subject to excise duty and
on the holding, movement and monitoring of such prod
Máire GEOGHEGAN-QUINN
ucts ( 3 ) as of its setting up.
Member of the Commission
( 1 ) OJ L 206, 8.8.2009, p. 1.
( 2 ) OJ L 347, 11.12.2006, p. 1.
( 3 ) OJ L 76, 23.3.1992, p. 1.

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ANNEX
STATUTES OF THE CLARIN ERIC
Table of contents
CHAPTER 1 – GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 1 Name, seat, location and working language
Article 2 Objectives and activities
CHAPTER 2 – MEMBERSHIP
Article 3 Membership and representing entity
Article 4 Admission of members and observers
Article 5 Withdrawal of a member or an observer/Termination of membership or observer status
CHAPTER 3 – RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF THE MEMBERS AND OBSERVERS
Article 6 Members
Article 7 Observers
CHAPTER 4 – GOVERNANCE OF CLARIN ERIC
Article 8 General Assembly
Article 9 Scientific Advisory Board
Article 10 National Coordinators’ Forum
Article 11 Executive Director
Article 12 Board of Directors
Article 13 Standing Committee for CLARIN technical centres
Article 14 Working Groups
CHAPTER 5 – FINANCE
Article 15 Budgetary principles and accounts
Article 16 Liability
CHAPTER 6 – REPORTING TO THE COMMISSION
Article 17 Reporting to the Commission
CHAPTER 7 – POLICIES
Article 18 Agreements with third parties
Article 19 Access policies for users
Article 20 Scientific evaluation policy
Article 21 Dissemination policy
Article 22 Intellectual property rights policy
Article 23 Employment policy, including equal opportunities
Article 24 Procurement policy and tax exemption
Article 25 Data policy

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CHAPTER 8 – DURATION, WINDING UP, DISPUTES, SET UP PROVISIONS
Article 26 Duration
Article 27 Winding up
Article 28 Applicable law
Article 29 Disputes
Article 30 Availability of statutes
Article 31 Setting-up provisions
ANNEX 1 LIST OF MEMBERS AND OBSERVERS
ANNEX 2 ANNUAL FEE
CHAPTER 1
GENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 1
Name, seat, location and working language
1.1. There shall be a European Research Infrastructure called the ‘Common Language Resources and Technology
Infrastructure’, hereinafter referred to as ‘CLARIN’.
1.2. CLARIN
shall
have
the
legal
form
of
a
European
Research
Infrastructure
Consortium
(ERIC)
incorporated
under
the provision of Regulation (EC) No 723/2009 and be named ‘CLARIN ERIC’.
1.3. CLARIN shall be a distributed research infrastructure located in all CLARIN ERIC member countries, as well as in
other countries where CLARIN ERIC has made agreements in accordance with Article 18.
1.4. CLARIN
ERIC
shall
have
its
statutory
seat
in
Utrecht,
the
Netherlands.
1.5. The
working
language
of
CLARIN
ERIC
is
English.
Article 2
Objectives and activities
2.1. The
ultimate
objective
of
CLARIN
ERIC
is
to
advance
research
in
humanities
and
social
sciences
by
giving
researchers unified access to a platform which integrates language-based resources and advanced tools at a European
level. This shall be implemented by the construction and operation of a shared distributed research infrastructure that
aims at making language resources, technology and expertise available to the humanities and social sciences research
communities at large.
2.2. To
this
end
CLARIN
ERIC
shall
undertake
and
coordinate
a
variety
of
activities,
including
but
not
limited
to:
(a) the creation of a federation of existing data and web-service centres to facilitate single sign-on access to data and to
technology services provided by these centres;
(b) the definition and maintenance of a collection of formal and de facto standards and mappings between those to
facilitate interoperability between data and services;
(c) the coordination and support of activities aimed at the acquisition and creation of new data and web-services;
(d) the collection of user requirements and best practice in order to provide efficient support to users;
(e) the creation of centres of expertise with a focus on the exploitation of language resources and technology for the
advancement of research in the humanities and social sciences;
(f) the organisation of training, awareness and dissemination actions in order to promote both the usage and the further
evolution of the research infrastructure;
(g) ensuring the creation and maintenance of a licensing, access and authentication framework that on the one hand
ensures easy access and at the same time protects the reasonable rights of owners of data and tools and privacy of
individuals;

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(h) maintaining and exploiting relationships with related organisations and infrastructures in and outside Europe with a
view to collaboration;
(i) contributing to the development of policies leading to the advancement of research in the European Research Area
(ERA), both within the fields of humanities and social sciences and across disciplines;
(j) any other related action that will help strengthening research in the ERA.
2.3. CLARIN ERIC shall construct and operate CLARIN on a non-economic basis; in order to further promote
innovation as well as transfer of knowledge and technology limited economic activities may be carried out as long as
they do not jeopardize the main activities.
CHAPTER 2
MEMBERSHIP
Article 3
Membership and representing entity
3.1. The following entities may become members of CLARIN ERIC or they may become observers without voting
rights:
(a) Member States;
(b) associated countries;
(c) third countries other than associated countries;
(d) intergovernmental organisations.
Conditions for admission of members and observers are specified in Article 4.1 and 4.2 of these statutes.
3.2. CLARIN
ERIC
shall
have
at
least
three
Member
States
as
members.
3.3. Member States shall jointly hold the majority of the voting rights in the General Assembly.
3.4. Any member or observer may be represented by one public entity or one private entity with a public service
mission, of its own choosing and appointed according to its own rules and procedures.
3.5. The current members, observers and their representing entities are listed in Annex 1. The members at the time of
submission of the ERIC application shall be referred to as founding members.
Article 4
Admission of members and observers
4.1. The
terms
for
admission
of
new
members
are
the
following:
(a) the admission of new members shall require the approval of the General Assembly;
(b) applicants shall submit a written application to the President of the General Assembly;
(c) the application shall describe how the applicant will contribute to CLARIN objectives and activities described in
Article 2 and how it will fulfil obligations referred to in Article 6.2.
4.2.
Entities listed in Article 3.1 who are willing to contribute to CLARIN ERIC, but are not yet in a position to join as
members, may apply for observer status. The terms for admission of observers are the following:
(a) observers shall be admitted for a three year period maximum. An observer may reapply once for observer status. In
exceptional cases the General Assembly may accept further extension of observer status;
(b) the admission or re-admission of observers shall require the approval of the General Assembly;
(c) applicants shall submit a written application to the CLARIN ERIC statutory seat;
(d) the application shall describe how the applicant will contribute to CLARIN objectives and activities described in
Article 2 and how it will fulfil obligations referred to in Article 7.2.

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Article 5
Withdrawal of a member or an observer/Termination of membership or observer status
5.1. Within the first five years of the establishment of CLARIN ERIC no member may withdraw unless the
membership has been entered into for a specified shorter period.
5.2. After the first five years of the establishment of CLARIN ERIC a member may withdraw at the end of a financial
year, following a request 12 months prior to the withdrawal.
5.3. Observers may withdraw at the end of a financial year, following a request six months prior to the withdrawal.
5.4. Financial and other obligations must be fulfilled before a withdrawal will be accepted.
5.5. The General Assembly shall have the power to terminate the membership of a member or the observer status of
an observer if the following conditions are met:
(a) the member or observer is in serious breach of one or more of its obligations under these statutes;
(b) the member or observer has failed to rectify such breach within a period of six months.
The member or observer shall be given opportunity to contest the decision of termination and to present its defence to
the General Assembly.
CHAPTER 3
RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF THE MEMBERS AND OBSERVERS
Article 6
Members
6.1. Rights
of
members
shall
include:
(a) to grant access to CLARIN and all its services to its research community;
(b) to attend and vote at the General Assembly and thereby exercise influence;
(c) to participate in the development of strategies and policies;
(d) to cooperate closely with other countries in making resources, tools and services available to the researchers of the
respective countries;
(e) to let its research community participate in the selection of relevant CLARIN standards and best practice recom
mendations;
(f) to let its research community participate in CLARIN events, such as summer schools, workshops, conferences and
training courses, at preferential rates;
(g) to use the CLARIN brand;
(h) to participate in Union project proposals where CLARIN ERIC acts as the submitting consortium.
6.2. Each
member
shall:
(a) pay the annual fee as specified in Annex 2;
(b) appoint a representing entity as mentioned in Article 3.4 and always keep the General Assembly informed about who
the representing entity is;
(c) empower its representing entity with the full authority to vote on all issues raised during the General Assembly and
published in the agenda;
(d) create a national consortium for carrying out the national obligations following from these statutes;
(e) appoint a national coordinator responsible for the national consortium;
(f) provide at least one data and service centre;
(g) provide an agreed upon user authentication and authorization system;
(h) provide agreed service(s);

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(i) promote adoption of relevant standards in national resource and tools creation projects;
(j) provide the necessary technical infrastructure to make access possible;
(k) promote uptake of CLARIN services among researchers in their country, and gather user feedback and requirements;
(l) support CLARIN centres in the member country by facilitating integration into national and other relevant infra
structures.
6.3. Members who have joined CLARIN ERIC reserving the right to withdraw before the end of the first five years of
the establishment of CLARIN ERIC shall pay a higher annual fee as specified in Annex 2.
6.4. Contributions
other
than
the
annual
fee
to
CLARIN
ERIC
may
be
provided
by
members
individually
or
jointly
in
cooperation with other members, observers or third parties. Such contributions may be made in cash or in kind.
6.5. A member shall empower its representing entity or an entity representing the national consortium to carry out
the obligations referred to in Article 6.2(a) and (d) to (l). CLARIN ERIC shall enter into a CLARIN Agreement with that
entity in order to lay down the conditions and specifications under which the obligation shall be fulfilled or the
contribution shall be made.
Article 7
Observers
7.1. Rights
of
observers
shall
include:
(a) to attend the General Assembly without a vote;
(b) to let its research community participate in CLARIN events, such as summer schools, workshops, conferences, training
courses at preferential rates, space permitting;
(c) to let its research community have access to support from CLARIN ERIC organisation in developing relevant systems,
processes and services.
7.2. Each
observer
shall:
(a) appoint a representing entity as mentioned in Article 3.4 and always keep the General Assembly informed about who
the representing entity is;
(b) pay the annual fee as specified in Annex 2;
(c) describe the contribution to the CLARIN ERIC objectives as mentioned in Article 2.
7.3. Contributions
other
than
the
annual
fee
to
CLARIN
ERIC
may
be
provided
by
observers
individually
or
jointly
in
cooperation with other members, observers or third parties. Such contributions may be made in cash or in kind.
7.4. An observer shall empower its representing entity to carry out the obligations referred to in Article 7.2(b) and (c).
CLARIN ERIC shall enter into a CLARIN Observer Agreement with that entity in order to lay down the conditions and
specifications under which the obligation shall be fulfilled or the contribution shall be made.
CHAPTER 4
GOVERNANCE OF CLARIN ERIC
Article 8
General Assembly
8.1. The General Assembly shall be the body of CLARIN ERIC with full decision-making powers, and shall represent
the members of CLARIN ERIC. Each member has one vote. Each entity representing a member shall nominate one official
representative. Additionally each member may bring an expert. Each delegation may consequently consist of up to two
persons, but the official representative carries the vote.
8.2. The General Assembly shall convene at least once a year, and shall at least:
(a) appoint, suspend or dismiss the Executive Director and the Board of Directors apart from the ex officio members
mentioned in Article 10.3 and Article 13.2;

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(b) confirm ex officio members of the Board of Directors;
(c) appoint the Scientific Advisory Board;
(d) decide on strategies for the construction and exploitation of CLARIN and any other issues deemed relevant by the
Board of Directors or by a member or group of members who requests it, in accordance with Article 8.3;
(e) approve the work programme and annual budget of CLARIN ERIC;
(f) decide at least every five years on the principles for calculating the annual fee for each member, and on the amount of
the annual fee of which the principles as well as the corresponding amounts shall be laid down in Annex 2 to these
statutes;
(g) approve annual reports and accounts of CLARIN ERIC;
(h) approve each member’s contribution to CLARIN;
(i) approve accession of new members and observers;
(j) decide on termination of membership and observer status;
(k) decide on winding up of CLARIN ERIC according to Article 27.
8.3. The General Assembly shall be convened by the President with at least four weeks’ notice, and the agenda shall be
circulated at least two weeks before the meeting. Members shall have the right to suggest matters for the agenda up to
three weeks before the meeting. A meeting of the General Assembly may be requested by at least 50 % of the members,
and the meeting shall be held as soon as possible, with at least two weeks’ notice.
8.4. The General Assembly shall elect a President by simple majority of the votes. The President shall be a member’s
official representative. The President shall be elected for a two year term, and no one may serve for more than two
consecutive terms. In case the President withdraws before the end of the term, a new President shall be elected by the
General Assembly.
8.5. The General Assembly shall elect a Vice President by simple majority of the votes. The Vice President shall be a
member’s official representative. The Vice President shall be elected for a two–year term, and no one may serve for more
than two consecutive terms. In case the Vice President withdraws before the end of the term, a new Vice President shall
be elected by the General Assembly. The Vice President shall substitute the President in his/her absence and in case of
conflict of interest.
8.6. If
an
official
representative
cannot
attend
the
General
Assembly,
the
member
may
authorise
another
representative
from the same entity, the national expert or an official representative of another member to vote on its behalf by means
of a written and duly signed authorisation, which shall be presented to the President by the beginning of the meeting. No
representative may bring more than three authorisations.
8.7. The General Assembly shall be chaired by the President, and in his or her absence by the Vice President. The
President, or a person authorised by the President, shall be responsible for updating Annex 1, so there shall be at all times
an accurate list of the members, observers and their representing entities.
8.8. All decisions shall be passed by simple majority of the votes cast, except decisions to:
(a) amend the statutes of CLARIN ERIC;
(b) after the first five years, amend Annex 2 “Annual Fee”;
(c) terminate CLARIN ERIC;
(d) terminate a membership or observer status;
(e) suspend or dismiss the Executive Director and the Board of Directors.
8.9. Decisions
concerning
the
following
shall
require
two
thirds
of
the
votes:
(a) the amendment of the statutes,
(b) the amendment of Annex 2,
(c) the suspension or dismissal of Executive Director and the Board of Directors,
(d) the termination of CLARIN ERIC,

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Any amendment of the Statutes shall be subject to the provisions laid down in Article 11 of Regulation (EC) No
723/2009.
8.10. The decision to terminate a membership or observer status shall require a unanimous vote, not counting the
vote of the member in question or the abstentions to vote.
8.11. Voting shall be conducted by secret ballot if requested by a representative. In case of a tie, the President shall
have the casting vote.
8.12. The quorum of the General Assembly shall be two thirds of the votes. The representatives may be present
physically or by authorisation, as described in Article 8.6. The General Assembly may decide to use technology, such as
video conferencing, for meetings.
8.13. The President may decide to use a written procedure for the adoption of decisions. In such cases, the President,
or a person authorized by the President, shall circulate the proposal to all official representatives of the General Assembly,
who then shall notify their objections, amendments or intentions to abstain within the time allowed. The response period
shall be no less than 14 calendar days. In urgent cases, and where measure to be adopted must be implemented
immediately, the President may shorten the response time to five calendar days. If there are no objections, amendments
or intentions to abstain made within the time allowed, the proposal shall be tacitly adopted. If an official representative
has objections or suggestions for amendments, the President may decide to modify the proposal and resubmit for written
procedure, or include the matter in the agenda of the next meeting of the General Assembly.
Article 9
Scientific Advisory Board
9.1. The members of the Scientific Advisory Board shall be appointed by the General Assembly. The Scientific
Advisory Board shall consist of high-level researchers who are independent ( 1 ) of CLARIN ERIC. Both the CLARIN
ERIC provider and user community shall be represented in the Scientific Advisory Board.
9.2. The number of members of the Scientific Advisory Board shall be decided by the General Assembly. This number
should not be less than five and not more than ten.
9.3. The
term
for
the
Scientific
Advisory
Board
members
shall
be
three
years,
with
a
possibility
of
one
more
term,
to
be decided by the General Assembly.
9.4.
The Scientific Advisory Board shall provide input to the General Assembly through solicited and unsolicited advice
on strategic issues, including but not limited to vision, new initiatives, work plans and quality assurance. The Scientific
Advisory Board may provide input for the General Assembly for the evaluation of the progress of the work and the
services offered by CLARIN ERIC.
9.5. The Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board shall be appointed by the General Assembly. The by-laws of the
Scientific Advisory Board shall be based on the general by-laws scheme developed by the Board of Directors. The by-laws
shall be approved by the Board of Directors.
Article 10
National Coordinators’ Forum
10.1. It
shall
be
the
duty
of
each
member
being
a
country
to
appoint
a
national
coordinator.
The
national
coordinator
shall act as the main liaison between CLARIN ERIC and the national consortium.
National coordinators shall be responsible for their country to follow the General Assembly’s policies and strategies for
the development and exploitation of CLARIN.
10.1.1. It
shall
be
the
duty
of
each
member
being
an
intergovernmental
organisation
with
an
operational
structure
to
appoint a coordinator. The coordinator shall act as the main liaison between CLARIN ERIC and the operational unit(s) of
the intergovernmental organisation. The coordinator shall be responsible for his/her organisation to follow the General
Assembly’s policies and strategies for the development and exploitation of CLARIN. In the remainder of these statutes the
term ‘national coordinator’ shall also include coordinators appointed by intergovernmental organisations.
10.2. The National Coordinators’ Forum shall consist of all national coordinators. The responsibility of the National
Coordinators’ Forum shall be to ensure the coordination of the implementation of the strategies laid out by the General
Assembly. The Forum shall have to maintain coherence and consistency across CLARIN and collaboration between the
members.
( 1 ) Independent means that there is no conflict of interest.

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10.3.
The Chair of the National Coordinators’ Forum shall be elected according to the by-laws of the Forum. The Chair
shall be ex officio member of the Board of Directors.
10.4.
The by-laws of the National Coordinators’ Forum shall be based on the general by-laws scheme developed by the
Board of Directors. The by-laws shall be approved by the Board of Directors.
Article 11
Executive Director
11.1. The
General
Assembly
shall
appoint
the
Executive
Director
of
CLARIN
ERIC
according
to
a
procedure
defined
by
the General Assembly. The Executive Director and the Board of Directors shall be jointly the legal representative of
CLARIN ERIC. The Executive Director shall carry out the day-to-day management of CLARIN ERIC. The Executive
Director shall be responsible for the implementation of a decision by the General Assembly to amend Annex 2.
11.2. The
term
for
the
Executive
Director
shall
be
five
years,
with
a
possibility
of
an
administrative
prolongation,
meaning a prolongation without a competition, of up to two years decided by the General Assembly. At the end of the
five years term or when the appointment can no longer be prolonged, another open call shall be issued.
Article 12
Board of Directors
12.1. The General Assembly shall appoint high-level individuals to form the Board of Directors. The number of
Directors shall be decided by the General Assembly. The appointment procedure shall be defined by the General
Assembly. The collective expertise of the Board shall include management, technical infrastructure, language resources
and tools and users’ needs.
12.2. The General Assembly shall appoint one of the members of the Board of Directors as Vice Director. The Vice
Director shall substitute the Executive Director in his/her absence or in case of conflict of interest.
12.3. The term for the Board members shall be three years, with a possibility of one more term, to be decided by the
General Assembly.
12.4. The Board of Directors shall be, together with the Executive Director, the executive body of CLARIN ERIC. The
Board of Directors shall be responsible for the smooth operation of CLARIN ERIC following the General Assembly
directions and decisions, as well as the feedback from the other boards and committees.
12.5. The Board of Directors shall establish a general scheme for by-laws to be used for all boards and committees
mentioned in these statutes, and shall approve the specific by-laws of each board and committee. The Board of Directors
shall establish its own by-laws based on the general scheme.
12.6. The Executive Director shall be the Chair of the Board of Directors.
Article 13
Standing Committee for CLARIN technical centres
13.1.
There shall be a Standing Committee for CLARIN technical centres. The Standing Committee for CLARIN centres
shall consist of the centre directors (or representatives designated by the directors) for those CLARIN centres that have
been identified as crucial for the operation of CLARIN on the basis of criteria to be formulated by the Board of Directors.
The decision to recognize a technical centre as crucial for the operation of CLARIN shall be the responsibility of the
General Assembly.
13.2. The
Standing
Committee
for
CLARIN
centres
shall
have
the
task
of
ensuring
consistence,
coherence
and
stability
of infrastructure services through decisions on implementation as well as coordination between the centres and members.
It shall report to the National Coordinators’ Forum and the Board of Directors. The Chair of the Standing Committee shall
be elected according to the Committee’s by-laws. The Chair shall be ex officio member of the Board of Directors.
13.3. The
Standing
Committee
shall
serve
as
a
forum
for
CLARIN
centres
to
exchange
ideas
and
experiences.
The
role
of the Standing Committee shall be to give advice and make requests and proposals to the CLARIN ERIC and to the
National Coordinators in order to ensure consistency, coherence and stability of services.
13.4.
The by-laws of the Standing Committee shall be based on the general by-laws scheme developed by the Board of
Directors. The by-laws shall be approved by the Board of Directors.
Article 14
Working Groups
14.1. The
Board
of
Directors
may
create
and
terminate
Working
Groups
for
themes
for
which
a
special
effort
is
needed, which cannot be performed by the Board of Directors.
14.2. The by-laws of the Working Groups shall be based on the general by-laws scheme developed by the Board of
Directors. The by-laws shall be approved by the Board of Directors.

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CHAPTER 5
FINANCE
Article 15
Budgetary principles and accounts
15.1. The financial year of CLARIN ERIC shall begin on 1 January and shall end on 31 December of each year.
15.2. All
items
of
revenue
and
expenditure
of
CLARIN
ERIC
shall
be
included
in
estimates
to
be
drawn
up
for
each
financial year and shall be shown in the annual budget. The annual budget shall be in compliance with the principles of
transparency.
15.3. The accounts of CLARIN ERIC shall be accompanied by a report on budgetary and financial management of the
financial year.
15.4. CLARIN ERIC shall be subject to the requirements of the applicable law as regards preparation, filing, auditing
and publication of accounts.
15.5. CLARIN ERIC shall ensure that the appropriations are used in accordance with the principles of sound financial
management.
15.6. CLARIN
ERIC
shall
record
the
costs
and
revenues
of
its
economic
activities
separately.
Article16
Liability
16.1. CLARIN
ERIC
shall
be
liable
for
its
debts.
16.2. The
members
are
not
jointly
liable
for
the
debts
of
CLARIN
ERIC.
16.3. The members’ financial liability towards CLARIN ERIC’s debts shall be limited to each individual member’s
annual contribution as specified in Annex 2.
16.4. CLARIN ERIC shall take appropriate insurance to cover the risks specific to the construction and operation of
CLARIN.
CHAPTER 6
REPORTING TO THE COMMISSION
Article 17
Reporting to the Commission
17.1. CLARIN
ERIC
shall
produce
an
annual
activity
report,
containing
in
particular
the
scientific,
operational
and
financial aspects of its activities. The report shall be approved by the General Assembly and transmitted to the
Commission and relevant public authorities within six months from the end of the corresponding financial year. This
report shall be made publicly available.
17.2. CLARIN ERIC shall inform the Commission of any circumstances which threaten to seriously jeopardise the
achievement of CLARIN ERIC tasks or hinder CLARIN ERIC from fulfilling requirements laid down in Regulation (EC) No
723/2009.
CHAPTER 7
POLICIES
Article 18
Agreements with third parties
18.1. In cases where CLARIN ERIC deems it beneficial, it may enter into agreement with third parties, such as e.g.
individual institutions, regions and non-member countries.
18.2. If
institutions
from
non-member
countries
or
other
parties
as
described
in
Article
18.1
wish
to
contribute
to
CLARIN ERIC with expertise, services, language resources and technology, CLARIN ERIC may enter into an agreement
with such parties. The agreement shall specify a certain service/contribution which the party will make, and specify access
rights, subscription fee and other conditions in the light of this contribution. It shall be a prerequisite that the users of
CLARIN data, tools and services are part of an authentication and authorisation system.
Article 19
Access policies for users
19.1. Where
access
for
researchers
in
CLARIN
member
countries
is
concerned,
data,
tools
and
services
offered
by
CLARIN ERIC shall be open to all employees and students in research institutions such as universities, research centres,
museums and research libraries, according to the authorisation of the content providers and through an authentication
approved by CLARIN ERIC.

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19.2. Where
access
for
researchers
in
non-member
countries
is
concerned,
the
research
institution
shall
pay
a
subscription fee in accordance with the principles laid down in Annex 2, which will give access for all employees and
students of the particular institution to CLARIN data, tools and services. It shall be a prerequisite that the users of
CLARIN data, tools and services are part of an authentication and authorisation system satisfying CLARIN requirements
and approved by CLARIN ERIC.
19.3. Access for other institutions, industry and similar types of specific users as well as individual researchers not
belonging to an institution may be granted for a fee. It shall be a prerequisite that the users of CLARIN data, tools and
services are part of an authentication and authorisation system satisfying CLARIN requirements and approved by CLARIN
ERIC.
19.4. Access for the general public shall be granted unless the services or resources are constrained by licensing
conditions imposed by the owners. Access to metadata and to open source and open access resources shall be granted.
19.5. Even if access is granted according to Article 19.1 to 19.4, some services and resources may be available against
a fee if required by the owner.
Article 20
Scientific evaluation policy
20.1. CLARIN ERIC shall be a facilitator of research and shall as a general rule encourage as free access as possible to
research data. Irrespective of this principle CLARIN ERIC shall promote high quality research and shall support a culture
of ‘best practice’ through training activities.
If access to CLARIN research data or tools has to be restricted for capacity reasons, and a selection of projects has to be
made, the scientific excellence of project proposals shall be judged in peer reviews by independent experts, and the criteria
and procedures shall be decided by the General Assembly, with advice from the Scientific Advisory Board. Such criteria
shall also take into account that a certain amount of the capacity should be reserved for totally new ideas that may not
yet have reached full maturity or widely recognized scientific excellence. The peers shall be selected by the Board of
Directors in accordance with the evaluation policy.
20.2. Evaluation
of
CLARIN
ERIC
and
its
results
shall
be
the
task
of
the
Scientific
Board
according
to
Article
9.4.
Article 21
Dissemination policy
21.1. CLARIN ERIC shall promote CLARIN and encourage researchers to embark on new and innovative projects and
to use CLARIN in their higher education.
21.2. CLARIN
ERIC
shall
generally
encourage
researchers
to
make
their
research
results
publicly
available
and
shall
request researchers of member countries to make results available through CLARIN.
21.3.
The dissemination policy shall describe the various target groups, and CLARIN shall use several channels to reach
the target audiences, such as web portal, newsletter, workshops, presence in conferences, articles in magazines and daily
newspapers.
Article 22
Intellectual property rights policy
22.1. Intellectual property rights of results created by CLARIN ERIC shall belong to CLARIN ERIC and shall be
managed by the Board of Directors.
22.2. Generally
Open
Source
and
Open
Access
principles
shall
be
favoured.
22.3. CLARIN
ERIC
shall
provide
guidance
(including
via
website)
to
researchers
to
ensure
that
research
undertaken
using material made accessible through CLARIN ERIC shall be undertaken within a framework that recognizes the rights
of data owners and privacy of individuals.
22.4. CLARIN ERIC shall ensure that users agree to the terms and conditions governing access and that suitable
security arrangements are in place regarding internal storage and handling.
22.5. CLARIN
ERIC
shall
have
in
place
well
defined
arrangements
for
investigating
allegations
of
security
breaches
and
confidentiality disclosures regarding research data.

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Article 23
Employment policy, including equal opportunities
23.1. CLARIN ERIC shall be an equal opportunity employer. Employment contracts shall follow the national laws of
the country in which the staff is employed.
23.2. For
each
task
CLARIN
ERIC
shall
select
the
best
candidate,
regardless
of
background,
nationality,
religion
or
gender.
Article 24
Procurement policy and tax exemption
24.1. CLARIN ERIC shall treat procurement candidates and tenderers equally and in a non-discriminatory way,
independent of whether or not they are based in the Union. The CLARIN ERIC procurement policy shall respect the
principles of transparency, non-discrimination and competition. Since CLARIN is a distributed facility, procurement shall
be done partly by the individual members, following their national public procurement regulations and procedures and
partly by CLARIN ERIC itself.
24.2. The Board of Directors shall be responsible for all CLARIN ERIC procurement. All tenders shall be publicised
effectively on the CLARIN ERIC website and in the members’ and observers’ territories. For procurement amounts higher
than EUR 200 000 CLARIN ERIC shall follow the principles of the EU Public Procurement Directives and subsequent
applicable national legislation. The decision to award procurement shall be publicised and include a full justification. The
General Assembly shall adopt Implementing Rules defining all necessary details on exact procurement procedures and
criteria.
24.3. Procurement
by
members
and
observers
concerning
CLARIN
activities
shall
be
done
in
such
a
way
that
due
consideration is given to CLARIN ERIC needs, technical requirements and specifications issued by the relevant bodies.
24.4. Tax
exemptions
based
on
Article
143(1)(g)
and
Article
151(1)(b)
of
Council
Directive
2006/112/EC
( 1 ) and in
accordance with Articles 50 and 51 of Council Implementing Regulation (EU) No 282/2011 ( 2 ) shall be limited to the
value added tax for such goods and services which are for official use by CLARIN ERIC, exceed the value of EUR 250, and
are wholly paid and procured by CLARIN ERIC. Procurement by individual members shall not benefit from these
exemptions. No further limits shall apply.
Article 25
Data policy
25.1.
Generally Open Source and Open Access principles shall be favoured by CLARIN ERIC, but existing licences shall
be respected.
25.2. CLARIN
ERIC
shall
make
all
language
resources
and
tools
publicly
visible
by
means
of
core
metadata
descrip
tions.
CHAPTER 8
DURATION, WINDING UP, DISPUTES, SET UP PROVISIONS
Article 26
Duration
26.1. CLARIN
ERIC
shall
exist
for
an
indefinite
period
of
time.
Article 27
Winding up
27.1. The winding up of CLARIN ERIC shall follow a decision of the General Assembly in accordance with Article 8.2
and 8.8.
27.2. Without
undue
delay
and
in
any
event
within
10
days
after
adoption
of
the
decision
to
wind
up
CLARIN
ERIC,
CLARIN ERIC shall notify the European Commission about the decision.
27.3. Assets remaining after payment of CLARIN ERIC debts shall be apportioned among the members in proportion
to their accumulated annual contribution to CLARIN ERIC as specified in Annex 2. In accordance with Article 16.3
liabilities remaining after including the CLARIN ERIC assets shall be apportioned among the members in proportion to
their annual contribution to CLARIN ERIC as specified in Annex 2.
( 1 ) OJ L 347, 11.12.2006, p. 1-118.
( 2 ) OJ L 77, 23.3.2011, p. 1-22

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27.4.
Without undue delay and in any event within 10 days of the closure of the winding up procedure, CLARIN ERIC
shall notify the Commission thereof.
27.5. CLARIN ERIC shall cease to exist on the day on which the European Commission publishes the appropriate
notice in the Official Journal of the European Union.
Article 28
Applicable law
28.1. CLARIN
ERIC
shall
be
governed,
by
precedence:
(a) by Union law, in particular Regulation (EC) No 723/2009;
(b) by the law of the Netherlands in case of a matter not covered (or only partly covered) by Union law;
(c) by these statutes.
Article 29
Disputes
29.1.
The Court of Justice of the European Union shall have jurisdiction over litigation among the members in relation
to CLARIN ERIC, between members and CLARIN ERIC and over any litigation to which the Union is a party.
29.2. Union
legislation
on
jurisdiction
shall
apply
to
disputes
between
CLARIN
ERIC
and
third
parties.
In
cases
not
covered by Union legislation, the law of the Netherlands shall determine the competent jurisdiction for the resolution of
such disputes.
Article 30
Availability of statutes
30.1. At any point in time the valid version of the statutes shall be publicly available at the CLARIN ERIC website and
at the statutory seat.
Article 31
Setting-up provisions
31.1. A constitutional meeting of the General Assembly shall be called by the host country as soon as possible but no
later than 45 calendar days after the Commission decision to set up CLARIN ERIC takes effect.
31.2. The
host
country
shall
notify
the
founding
members
of
any
specific
urgent
legal
action
that
needs
to
be
taken
on
behalf of CLARIN ERIC before the constitutional meeting is held. Unless a founding member objects within 5 working
days after being notified, the legal action shall be carried out by a person duly authorised by the host state.
Annex 1
LIST OF MEMBERS AND OBSERVERS
In this Annex the members and observers, and the entities representing them are listed.
Last updated: 20 September 2010
Members
Country or Intergovernmental organisation Representing
entity
The Republic of Austria Austrian
Federal
Ministry
for
Science
and
Research
(BMWF)
The Republic of Bulgaria Ministry
of
Education,
Youth
and
Science
The Czech Republic Ministry
of
Education,
Youth
and
Sports
(MEYS)
The Kingdom of Denmark Danish
Agency
for
Science,
Technology
and
Innovation
(DASTI)
The Dutch Language Union Secretary
General
The Republic of Estonia Ministry
of
Education
and
Research
The Federal Republic of Germany German
Federal
Ministry
of
Education
and
Research
(BMBF)

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Country or Intergovernmental organisation Representing
entity
The Kingdom of the Netherlands Netherlands
Organisation
for
Scientific
Research
(NWO)
The Republic of Poland
Observers
Country or Intergovernmental organisation Representing
entity
Annex 2
ANNUAL FEE
Principles
For the initial five year period the principles as described below shall be used to calculate the annual cash contributions
by the members, observers and individual institutions in non-member countries that want to join CLARIN ERIC. The
General Assembly may also make special collaboration agreements with third parties. Before the end of the initial five
year period it shall decide about the calculation method for subsequent periods.
The principles shall be as follows:
(a) the initial target budget is EUR 1 000 000 per year, based on an estimated participation by 2/3 of the 26 countries
represented in the CLARIN Preparatory Phase consortium; if more members join, the General Assembly may decide to
lower the contributions or to increase the level of activity;
(b) the contribution for year 1 by The Netherlands, as the host country, is EUR 250 000;
(c) the maximal contribution by other members for year 1 is EUR 200 000;
(d) the minimal contribution by members for year 1 is EUR 11 800;
(e) the contribution for each member shall be fixed for five years, with an annual increase of 2 % in order to compensate
for inflation and increase of costs. The exact amount for each member is laid down in the table below;

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(f) members joining in later years shall pay the indexed contribution fixed for that year;
(g) observers shall pay the minimal indexed membership contribution as specified in the table below;
(h) individual institutions in non member countries shall pay the minimal indexed contribution as specified in the table
below;
(i) the contribution by the Dutch Language Union shall be EUR 28 600, which is based on the Flemish share in the
Union gross domestic product (resulting in EUR 23 600), plus an additional amount of EUR 5 000, as the specific
contribution by the Dutch Language Union (as an international organisation);
(j) the contribution for entities joining in the course of a year shall be proportional to the number of remaining months
in that year, starting on the first day of the month of joining;
(k) contributions shall be based on the country’s GDP in 2010 as a percentage of the Union gross domestic product in
that year (based on EUROSTAT), according to the following formula:
The percentage of Union gross domestic product is rounded to the next integer (UP if less than 5, DOWN otherwise) and multiplied
by the minimal contribution, as is shown in the following table:
% of EU GDP rounded Contribution
in
EUR
≤ 1
1 11
800
> 1 and ≤ 2
2 23
600
> 2 and ≤ 3
3 35
400
> 3 and ≤ 4
4 47
200
> 5 and ≤ 6
5 59
000
> 6 and ≤ 7
6 70
800
Etc
…
…
≥ 16 and < 17 16 188
800
≥ 17 n/a 200
000
The annual fee for members not initially committing for five years shall be raised by 25 %, as long as the commitment
for the remaining period has not been made. If a commitment for the remaining part of the five years is made or if the
member stays for five years, arrangements shall be made to ensure that the member will not pay more in total than the
normal fees for those five years.
The table below and its totals include 33 potential European members.
Resulting figures for members committing themselves for five years
with annual increase of 2 % sum
(potential)
% GDP
Base
member
EU 2010
contribution
y2012 y2013 y2014 y2015 y2016 y2012-16
Iceland 0,10 11
800 11
800 12
036 12
277 12
522 12
773 61
408
Cyprus 0,10 11
800 11
800 12
036 12
277 12
522 12
773 61
408
Estonia 0,10 11
800 11
800 12
036 12
277 12
522 12
773 61
408
Malta 0,10 11
800 11
800 12
036 12
277 12
522 12
773 61
408

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with annual increase of 2 % sum
(potential)
% GDP
Base
member
EU 2010
contribution
y2012 y2013 y2014 y2015 y2016 y2012-16
Latvia 0,10 11
800 11
800 12
036 12
277 12
522 12
773 61
408
Lithuania 0,20 11
800 11
800 12
036 12
277 12
522 12
773 61
408
Bulgaria 0,30 11
800 11
800 12
036 12
277 12
522 12
773 61
408
Luxembourg 0,30 11
800 11
800 12
036 12
277 12
522 12
773 61
408
Slovenia 0,30 11
800 11
800 12
036 12
277 12
522 12
773 61
408
Croatia 0,40 11
800 11
800 12
036 12
277 12
522 12
773 61
408
Slovakia 0,50 11
800 11
800 12
036 12
277 12
522 12
773 61
408
Hungary 0,80 11
800 11
800 12
036 12
277 12
522 12
773 61
408
Romania 1,00 11
800 11
800 12
036 12
277 12
522 12
773 61
408
Czech
1,20 23
600 23
600 24
072 24
553 25
045 25
545 122
815
Republic
Ireland 1,30 23
600 23
600 24
072 24
553 25
045 25
545 122
815
Portugal 1,40 23
600 23
600 24
072 24
553 25
045 25
545 122
815
Finland 1,50 23
600 23
600 24
072 24
553 25
045 25
545 122
815
DLU/Flanders 1,68 28
600 28
600 29
172 29
755 30
351 30
958 148
836
Denmark 1,90 23
600 23
600 24
072 24
553 25
045 25
545 122
815
Greece 1,90 23
600 23
600 24
072 24
553 25
045 25
545 122
815
Austria 2,30 35
400 35
400 36
108 36
830 37
567 38
318 184
223
Norway 2,60 35
400 35
400 36
108 36
830 37
567 38
318 184
223
Belgium 2,90 35
400 35
400 36
108 36
830 37
567 38
318 184
223
Sweden 2,90 35
400 35
400 36
108 36
830 37
567 38
318 184
223
Poland 2,90 35
400 35
400 36
108 36
830 37
567 38
318 184
223
Switzerland 3,30 35
400 35
400 36
108 36
830 37
567 38
318 184
223
Turkey 4,70 59
000 59
000 60
180 61
384 62
611 63
863 307
038
Netherlands 4,80 250
000 250
000 255
000 260
100 265
302 270
608 1
301
010
Spain 8,70 94
400 94
400 96
288 98
214 100
178 102
182 491
261
Italy 12,80 141
600 141
600 144
432 147
321 150
267 153
272 736
892
United
14,00 165
200 165
200 168
504 171
874 175
312 178
818 859
707
Kingdom
France 16,10 188
800 188
800 192
576 196
428 200
356 204
363 982
523
Germany 20,60 200
000 200
000 204
000 208
080 212
242 216
486 1
040
808
TOTAL 1
635
000 1
635
000 1
667
700 1
701
054 1
735
075 1
769
777 8
508
606

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