8.2 Definitions

(Amended 4/1/25)

1. A "conflict of interest in employment" at the University of Iowa arises when 1) an individual University of Iowa employee has the responsibility to make, or participate actively in making, decisions or recommendations relating to the employment status of another individual University of Iowa employee (hereafter, "decision-making responsibility") and 2) these two individuals (hereafter “associated individuals”) have a current or former relationship occurring outside the work setting that would make it difficult for the individual with the decision-making responsibility to be objective, or that for a reasonable person would create the appearance that such an individual may not be objective. 
2. “Decision-making responsibility” includes but is not limited to situations when there is any reporting line between two associated individuals. For the purposes of these rules, decisions or recommendations related to employment status include those related to hiring, salary, resource allocation including grant funding, working conditions, working responsibilities, evaluation, promotion, and termination.
3. Examples of relationships that give rise to “associated individuals” include, but are not limited to, the following:
   1. relationships by blood, adoption, marriage, or domestic partnership: partner, parent, child, sibling, first cousin, uncle, aunt, nephew, niece, spouse, brother- or sister-in-law, father- or mother-in-law, son- or daughter-in-law, step-parent, or step-child; or
   2. romantic and/or sexual relationships or intense personal friendships or conflicts; or
   3. significant external business relationships.
4. For purposes of this policy, the "first neutral supervisor" is the person (usually the director, departmental executive officer, divisional head, dean of the college, or vice president in charge of the department, college, or unit) immediately superior to the one of the two associated individuals who, if there were no conflict of interest, would have decision-making responsibility relating to the employment status of the other associated individual. 
5. For purposes of this policy, the “university official” is the university administrator who has primary responsibility for approval of employment decisions regarding the associated individuals, and is typically the dean or vice president, or their designee, who holds administrative responsibility for the college or organizational unit in which the associated individuals are employed.