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Patent Law

Intellectual property law is made up of several legal fields that regulate creations of the mind. They include:

  • patent law, which provides the set of rights a person holds to an invention;
  • copyright law, which protects the creators of expression;
  • trademark law, which protects words, logos, or phrases used to identify or associate the source of a good or service; and
  • trade secrets, which protects the “secret” formula or processes a company uses to make its products.

Typically, intellectual property and some technology lawyers will choose to specialize in one of the above areas, but some lawyers have a broad practice and work in several or even all the intellectual property law areas.

Intellectual property lawyers help clients obtain patents for their invention or registration for their trademarks or copyrights. They represent clients in licensing and enforcing their rights through litigation of infringement claims. They also counsel their clients about the intellectual property rights others may have to help clients avoid allegations of infringement or to help clients challenge the validity of a competitor’s patents or registrations.

Courses

Courses designated as "primary" are foundational, while those listed as "secondary" contain relevant and related content. "Co-curricular" courses are credit-bearing extra-curricular activities, while "experiential" courses are practice-based offerings. Please keep in mind that the focus of any course will vary depending on the instructor.

Primary Courses

111: Property 4 credits PRIMARY

Introduction to basic concepts and principles of Anglo-American law as they relate to personal and real property.

206: Taxation: Federal Income 3 or 4 credits PRIMARY

Federal income tax is life. This class lives in a statute, the Internal Revenue Code. It focuses on reading, interpreting, and applying the rules of the Code. It is primarily a statutory interpretation class. Students will calculate the federal income tax liabilities of taxpayers by determining each taxpayer's gross income, determining and subtracting above the line deductions, noting adjusted gross income, subtracting either itemized deductions or the standard deduction, applying tax rates and then calculating and subtracting any available tax credits. We will do calculations using only the +, -, multiply, and divide functions on a $5ish calculator.

415: Intellectual Property Innovation and Commercialization 2 credits PRIMARY

This course reinforces and expands on the student's understanding of many of the fundamental principles of intellectual property law and focuses specifically on its development and commercialization. Considerations include licensing strategy and alternatives, confidentiality, joint venture and other types of collaborative agreements, technology transfer and related contracting and documentation. A pre-requisite or co-requisite of either Intellectual Property (Survey), Patent Law, Copyrights, or Trademarks is strongly suggested, but not required.

516: Secured Transactions 3 credits PRIMARY

A study of Articles 9 and 6 of the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), which apply to transactions in which a debtor borrows money from a creditor and grants to the creditor a security interest in personal property of the debtor to secure the debtor's promise to repay the loan.

534: Intellectual Property 3 credits PRIMARY

This course provides a survey of the "core" areas of federal intellectual property law (IP law)-trademarks, copyrights and patents. As a result of this course you will be able to: 1) identify the IP issues raised by a client; 2) explain why something is or is not entitled to IP protection; 3) Analyze a basic trademark, copyright or patent infringement issue; 4) Draft correspondence to IP clients concerning acquisition or enforcement of IP rights.

597: Trade Secrets and Unfair Competition 2 credits PRIMARY

This course examines the law and legal theories related to identifying and protecting competitive business interests and confidential business information — one of the fastest growing areas of intellectual property law outside of traditional patent, copyright and trademark concerns. In general, the course covers trade secret identification, protection and misappropriation; covenants not to compete and other forms of restrictive covenants, including noncompetition, nonsolicitation, confidentiality and assignment of invention agreements; applicable state and federal statutes, case law and common law duties; litigation strategies and the many practical issues regarding the protection of confidential information, customers and other legitimate business interests given today’s highly mobile and computerized workplace. Litigation and client counseling strategies are also explored, with a practical focus of applying legal theories to typical situations confronted in this rapidly developing area of law.

Secondary Courses

463: Patent Prosecution Seminar 2 credits SECONDARY

The seminar focuses on practical application of patent law concepts in preparing and prosecuting patent applications. The course examines patent statutes and United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) rules governing patent prosecution as well as court decisions impacting and interpreting patents. In addition to in-class discussions, students will practice writing claims, draft a patent application, a response to an office action, perform a patentability search, and prepare letters to clients relating to patent practice questions.

514: Federal Courts 3 credits SECONDARY

A study of issues related to jurisdiction of the U.S. trial and appellate courts, including subject matter jurisdiction, venue, judicial jurisdiction, standing, and other issues particularly related to federal courts, such as the abstention doctrine, forum non conveniens, choice of law, and joinder of state and federal law issues in the same case.

538: Antitrust 2 or 3 credits SECONDARY

An overview of federal antitrust law or competition law, including laws related to agreements restraining trade (especially agreements between competitors), monopolization and attempted monopolization, unfair trade practices, and merger policy and practice. These topics are relevant to all businesses and their lawyers. The course focuses on learning the fundamentals and a practical approach for counseling clients in this area.

545: Patent Law 2 credits SECONDARY

This course is a study of the policy and constitutional underpinnings of the U.S. Patent System including consideration of economic justifications; exploration of basic requirements of patentability including patentable subject matter, novelty and non-obviousness; overview of U.S. Patent Office procedures; exploration of patent infringement standards and procedures including claim construction, determination of liability, defenses and remedies; and consideration of the role of patents in business transactions and licensing.

657: Biotechnology Law and Policy 2 credits SECONDARY

Biotechnology is a major growth industry and both large and boutique law firms are establishing biotech or “life sciences” practice groups. This course surveys a range of legal topics in this field, such as: FDA regulation of drugs and devices, regulation of medical research, products liability, insurance coverage of pharmaceuticals, intellectual property, and genetics. Offered on a periodic basis.

Experiential Courses

345: Semester in Practice 10 or 11 credits EXPERIENTIAL

This is the field placement component of a full term externship program and is paired with the Externship Lecture course. Total credits between Semester in Practice and Externship Lecture will total 13. The number of credit hours awarded to an individual student will determine the hours of work required at the field placement and meet or exceed the ABA standards. In accordance with ABA guidelines, students work at a placement under a supervising attorney. C-LAW 300.

351: Copyrights: Practicum 1 credit EXPERIENTIAL

353: Intellectual Property Practicum 1 or 2 credits EXPERIENTIAL

392: Intellectual Property Law Clinic I 4 credits EXPERIENTIAL

This course provides students with hands-on opportunities to assist clients with transactional intellectual property matters. Student services include advising clients on basic intellectual property principles, drafting contracts (or contract provisions) that affect intellectual property rights, prosecuting copyright and/or trademark applications, and preparing policy documents and guidelines. In addition to direct client representation, students will attend a two-hour seminar, and meet with the clinic faculty supervisor to discuss fieldwork each week. Intellectual Property is a prerequisite.

676: Summer Externship 4 credits EXPERIENTIAL

This course is currently available only in the summer. The director of the externship designates one or more cities in North and South Carolina, usually including Charlotte, NC, and offers the students externships in a designated practice area. The practice areas vary from summer to summer. Students meet weekly with the director to integrate and apply the doctrinal insights received elsewhere in the law school curriculum and in the subject matter of the field placements. The course fulfills the practical skills requirement.

Co-Curricular Activities

522: Journal of Business and Intellectual Property Law 0 to 2 credits ACTIVITY

685: Transactional Competition Problem Book 1 credit ACTIVITY

The Transactional Competition Board is a student-run organization that oversees transactional competitions and the preparation and publication of an annual Problem Book. Students selected by the Transactional Competition Board to prepare and edit the Problem Book receive one academic credit on certification of their work by a faculty member.

Faculty

The following faculty are knowledgeable about the topic and may be a useful resource for you.

Raina Haque

Raina Haque

Professor of Practice

Chris Meazell

Chris Meazell

Professor of Practice

Keith Robinson

Keith Robinson

Associate Dean for Research

Zaneta Robinson

Zaneta Robinson

Associate Clinical Professor

Simone Rose

Simone Rose

Professor of Law