All entries must meet our definition of alternative energy technology, as described in our category definitions.  Each entry must be categorized under one of the 3 categories, although NextEnergy Lab Competition organizers reserve the right to re-categorize or accept entries as they see fit. The category definitions are:

• Applications are due by Friday, November 24, 2006.  All qualifying applications will be reviewed and formal interviews with NextEnergy staff will be conducted the December 18-22.  NextEnergy Lab Competition Awardees will be notified before December 31, 2006 to allow them to prepare for occupancy in the 2007 calendar year.  Applicants agree to financially commit to a 2-year lease ($3,700/month). 
• Terms of the $25,000 seed investment are negotiable but will be initially structured as a convertible loan.  
• Other requirements: Those companies currently contracted as tenants with NextEnergy as of September 30, 2006 do not qualify for this offer.  All applicants must agree to sign a tenant contract and financially invest in a full 24 month lease of the lab at $3,700 rate per month.   Pending state and local approvals and permitting, competition awardees must agree to finance and occupy their labs with equipment and office infrastructure no later than March 31, 2007 to recognize full benefits as outlined above.  All applicants must be in financially good standing. 
  

Michigan Base
Contestants from anywhere may apply, as long as you will establish your primary place of business in Michigan if you win the award. For corporations or other organizations, your primary place of business must be in Michigan. It is acceptable if your corporation or LLC is filed with another state, such as Delaware.

Teams
Contestants must participate in teams of two or more people; individuals are not eligible to compete. There is no maximum number of people on a team. Team members may be added or removed until the interviews are conducted (by December 18, 2006). All contestants must be United States residents, citizens, or legal aliens (for example: people with F1 or H1 visas).

Team Leaders
Each team must have a leader, who will be responsible for:

• Ensuring that the team incorporates or becomes an LLC if the team wins an award.
• Representing all aspects of the team and the team's submission until a legal entity is created. (The Open organizers will stay out of intra-team conflicts; the team leader has the final word about who's on and off the team, the team's project, etc.)

Team leaders must be at least 18 years of age.

More Than One Team/More Than One Entry

Contestants may serve on multiple teams, but a single contestant can be the team leader on only one team. For teams that are in the final round, there can be no contestant overlap.

Taxability
All winnings are taxable and the winners must complete a form W-9 prior to payment.

Start-ups and Funding Limits

Each entry must be a start-up that has received less than $200,000 in funding during the past 18 months. Grants earmarked for research expenditures do not count toward the $200,000 limit. Additionally, each team must pledge that it will not exceed $200,000 in funding before the competition winner is announced on December 31, 2006. A start-up can be a group of people who have formed a team to enter the contest. However, a legal entity (corporation, LLC, or similar) must be created prior to receiving any prizes, and any such legal entity must have an ownership structure typical of an independent start-up.

Awards are not intended to subsidize corporate or university projects. The amount and source of any secured capital should be clearly identified in the team's executive summary.

Intellectual Property Rights Owners

Before submitting your business we urge your team to confirm with appropriate advisors or legal counsel that any intellectual property described in your plan is protected by appropriate intellectual property filings or notices (patent, copyright, etc.) submitted by the owning institution or individuals. We also recommend that you determine in advance whether your plan describes a technology, invention, copyrightable work or other intellectual property owned by your employee or university.

If you are not sure about the legal status of your own or third-party intellectual property or any other aspect of your plan, we urge you to seek independent legal counsel.

Non-disclosure

If you have valuable intellectual property, please seek legal advice prior to submitting your application. NextEnergy and appointed judges will not enter into a nondisclosure agreement with any entrant. By entering the competition, each entrant will acknowledge that any information the entrant provides is at risk of disclosure and will agree to release and hold harmless NextEnergy and judges, sponsors, and partners from any claim arising out of any disclosure of information provided by the entrant. Each entrant will also agree and acknowledge that NextEnergy, judges, sponsors, partners will have the right to copy and distribute information provided by the entrant for the purposes of evaluating the information during the competition.

Exclusions

You may not apply for the competition if you are a current NextEnergy employee, lab tenant, board member, volunteer, judge, technical advisory panel member, or if you are in any other way involved with the NextEnergy operation of the competition. Immediate family members of the aforementioned people are also ineligible to compete.
People who are affiliated with NextEnergy sponsors or partners may be eligible to participate. Contact the NextEnergy organizers if you have an eligibility question.

Disqualification

The judging panel of the NextEnergy Lab Competition reserves the right to disqualify any entry that in its judgment violates the letter or the spirit of the competition guidelines, processes and rules. Its decisions are final and binding.

Competition Liability and Awards

Entrants acknowledge that the judges, sponsors, partners and NextEnergy Lab Competition organizers intend to carry out a fair and open competition, but are volunteering their services for the benefit of the competition with no expectation of incurring liability by virtue of such participation.

Each entrant, by entering the competition, will agree and acknowledge that the activities of the competition and all decisions made in the competition are within the sole discretion and determination of the judges, sponsors, partners and NELC organizers. The entrant will release and hold harmless all judges, sponsors, partners and other NELC organizers from any claims, liabilities, damages, demands or actions, of any kind or nature, by any entrant, arising out of any of the activities of the competition, including, without limitation, decisions on competition winners and disqualifications, regardless of whether such actions are willful or negligent.

Additional Rules

Situations not addressed by the above rules will be resolved by the Executive Council of the NELC, and its decision will be final. The NELC Executive Council reserves the right to amend the rules without notice; amendments may include rulings on situations that are not covered by the above rules or further interpretations or clarifications of the existing rules.