This government document (2007) guides institutions and researchers in responsible research practices, endorsed by both national research funders: National Health and Medical Research Council and the Australian Research Council.

Significantly, it says that INSTITUTIONS MUST: "... have a policy on the retention of materials and research data; ... provide facilities for the safe and secure storage of research data and for maintaining records of where research data is stored; ... have a policy on the ownership of research materials and data during and following the research project; ... have a policy on the ownership of, and access to, databases and archives that is consistent with confidentiality requirements, legislation, privacy rules and other guidelines."

Jordan Hatcher's Open Data Commons Public Domain Dedication and Licence launched at the Open Knowledge Conference (OKCon) at the LSE (Mar. 2008). The ODC PDDL is a document intended to allow you to freely share, modify, and use this work for any purpose and without any restrictions. This licence is intended for use on databases or their contents (”data”), either together or individually.

A useful fact sheet from the DCC on copyright in databases and the database right.

the protocol is meant to be a basis for creating a legal tool to facilitate data re-use and data integration across international jurisdictions.