Intellectual Property LL.M.

The Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Intellectual Property Law is designed to provide graduates of foreign law schools with a deep understanding of the doctrine and policy of United States intellectual property law, including patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets.

Intellectual property has become a focus in the global marketplace and information economy, presenting some of the most important and complex issues facing legal systems, as well as the business, entertainment and technology communities.

The one-year program requires full-time attendance and 24 hours of course credits.

Required Courses

• U.S. Contract Law for LL.M. (3) (Waived if student had common law contracts)
• Patent Law (3) or Intellectual Property Survey (2)
• Copyright Law (3)
• Trademark Law (3)
• Foreign Graduate Seminar (4)*

* During the Foreign Graduate Seminar, students working toward the specialized LL.M. degree in Intellectual Property Law must write an Honors level research paper on an intellectual property law topic approved by Professors Craig Nard and Jack Turner; the grade of Honors is equivalent to a B+ or better.

Elective Courses:*

In addition to the required classes above, students pursing the LL.M. in Intellectual Property Law must complete 8 or 9 credit hours from the list of elective courses below.

• Business Associations (4)
• Cyberlaw (2)
• Computer Law & Policy (2)
• Doing Business in the U.S. (3)
• Internet and the Law (1)
• Intellectual Property Survey (2)
• Intellectual Property Transactions (2)
• Intellectual Property from a Business & Strategic Point of View (1)
• Intellectual Property & Deal Making (2)
• Law and the Visual Arts (2)
• Law of Music Industry (2)
• Patent Prosecution (2)

NOTE: Course offerings may change from year to year and other intellectual property elective courses may qualify for the LL.M. in Intellectual Property Law at the discretion of the Director of Foreign Graduate Legal Studies.

Eligibility

Candidates must have a foreign university-level degree in law and a TOEFL score of 90 (213, 570) or IELTS of 6.5. Candidates whose TOEFL or IELTS scores do not meet the criteria, but otherwise have excellent academic and professional credentials, may be granted conditional admission with additional English language study and/or completion of our Summer Language and Law Institute. Foreign patent attorneys who do not have an LL.B. but are working in Intellectual Property are also welcome to apply.