J.D. Intellectual Property Emphasis Area Requirements
Student Learning Outcomes
Students graduating from this program will:
- Be able to identify legal issues in intellectual property practice and apply basic principles of intellectual property law necessary to resolve those issues. Assessed by essay tests, graded with rubrics, in required courses.
- Be able to use specialized knowledge of intellectual property doctrine to resolve emerging issues in the field. Assessed by tests or papers, graded with rubrics, in elective courses.
- Be able to research advanced topics in the field and use that research to solve a focused, complex issue in the field. Assessed by faculty critique of the research paper requirement and re-writing until paper is of faculty-agreed standard of quality.
Student will have to take a total of 16 credit hours from the below mandatory and elective courses. All courses must be taken for a grade (with the exception of those courses for which a grade option is unavailable).
Required
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| The following class must be taken: | ||
| LAW 8808 | Intellectual Property Law | 2-3 |
| At least two of the following must be taken: | ||
| Business Torts and Unfair Competition | ||
| Copyright Law | ||
| Patent Law | ||
Electives
The remaining hours to be satisfied from the following:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Art Law | ||
| Intellectual Property Licensing | ||
| Seminar in Law Science & Technology | ||
| Patent Prosecution | ||
| Advising Life Sciences and Technology Entrepreneurs | ||
| Intellectual Property Litigation | ||
| Seminar in Advanced Trademark | ||
| Administrative Law | ||
| Sports Law I, Amateur Sports Law | ||
| Sports Law II, Professional Sports Law | ||
| Antitrust And Fair Competition Law | ||
| First Amendment Law | ||
| Cyberlaw | ||
| Entrepreneurial Innovation Mining |
No more than one of the following can count toward the required 16 credit hours: LAW 8910 Intellectual Property Clinic, Technology Transfer Externship, or LAW 8757N Entrepreneurship and New Venture Creation (with IP faculty advisor approval).
Other courses may be approved by the IP faculty advisor to count towards the Emphasis. Where a course includes a substantial component of IP law, part of that course may count towards the 16-hour requirement with advance approval from the IP faculty advisor.
The above requirements are in addition to any hours received in connection with completion of the Advanced Research Requirement (See below).
Advanced Research Requirement
A paper satisfying the R&W requirement or an equivalent independent study writing project (including law review notes or comments) must be undertaken by writing on an IP subject, which subject has been approved by the student's IP faculty advisor. This requirement may also be satisfied through the writing of a professional quality brief as a team member in an IP-related competition, such as the Giles Sutherland Rich Memorial Moot Court Competition, or, with the approval of the student's IP faculty advisor, by writing of a professional quality brief in another equivalent IP competition that has a brief writing component.
Class papers do not satisfy this requirement, but may be expanded as an independent paper or the R&W paper, with approval of the IP faculty advisor, the expanded paper may satisfy this requirement. Any credits earned through satisfaction of this writing requirement will NOT be counted towards the 16 hours.
Practical Skills Requirement
Students must complete at least one course containing a substantial practical skills component. A course used to satisfy the practical skills requirement can also count toward the 16 hours of required coursework. The following courses satisfy this requirement:
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Entrepreneurship and New Venture Creation (with IP faculty advisor approval) | ||
| Intellectual Property Clinic | ||
| Intellectual Property Licensing | ||
| Intellectual Property Litigation | ||
| Patent Prosecution | ||
Technology Transfer Externship | ||
Alternatively and with approval of the IP faculty advisor, the requirement may be met by other internships, externships, moot courts, simulation courses, drafting courses, or other courses or activities designed to provide exposure to type of work we performed as IP lawyers in the field.
Ethics Requirement
Ethical considerations will be incorporated into the listed required emphasis area courses.
Important Note: Because the School is committed to keeping up with changes in the practice of law, the requirements for emphasis areas may change during the course of a student's enrollment at the School. The requirements at the time a student is granted admission into the emphasis area are the requirements that govern completion of the student's emphasis requirements. For possible revised requirements that will take effect with the next academic year, ask the emphasis area advisor for the most recent iteration of requirements. A course not listed above can meet emphasis area requirements if approved by the emphasis area advisors.
Student Learning Outcomes
Students graduating from this program will:
- Lawyering Skills. All LL.M. in Lawyering students will acquire or improve the following legal skills: the ability to read and analyze legal texts, including cases; the ability to conduct legal research on U.S. law sources; the ability to spot legal issues raised by typical legal problems; the ability to apply the law to factual scenarios; the ability to analyze legal issues and predict likely judicial outcomes; the ability to communicate legal analysis clearly in writing and orally; the ability to interview witnesses and clients; the ability to counsel clients with legal analysis and legal options; the ability negotiate a legal issue or problem with an adversary; the ability to make persuasive arguments based on the combination of law and facts.
- Legal English. For those students who were trained in law outside of the U.S. or another English-speaking, common law country, they will develop a working knowledge of key legal English terms used in law practice in the United States.
- Knowledge of U.S. Law. Students in the LL.M. in Lawyering program will learn or deepen their understanding of U.S. law generally and in particular sub-areas of U.S. law in one of the emphasis areas or such other area or combination of areas selected by the student with the approval of the academic advisor.
Below is a partial list of courses that would support the emphasis areas identified. Course schedules change on an annual basis, so all courses listed below may not be available in a particular year. The LL.M. student’s academic advisor may approve additional courses not listed as counting towards an emphasis area. One course, Global Legal Systems, is listed for each emphasis area because students write papers to compare US law to the law of other countries, and that course can count towards an emphasis area if the paper topic supports the emphasis and is approved by the academic advisor.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| LAW 8797 | Business Torts and Unfair Competition | 2-3 |
| LAW 8798 | Copyright Law | 2-3 |
| LAW 8716 | Cyberlaw | 2-3 |
| LAW 8808 | Intellectual Property Law | 2-3 |
| LAW 8910 | Intellectual Property Clinic | 2 |
| LAW 8905 | Intellectual Property Litigation | 2 |
| LAW 8808S | Intellectual Property Remedies | 2-3 |
| LAW 8808L | Intellectual Property Licensing | 2-3 |
| LAW 8882 | Patent Law | 2-3 |
| LAW 8882R | Patent Prosecution | 2-3 |
| LAW 8743 | Global Legal Systems (with appropriate topic for paper) | 1-3 |