Intellectual Property Law - Industrial Property
Module summary
The purpose of this module is to consider the law relating to patents, trade marks, passing off, breach of confidence within their institutional setting at International, European and national level.
Recent years have witnessed an expansion in the scope of these intellectual property rights, and having examined the institutional setting in which policy is formed, the reach and impact of these rights within individual territories. The sessions will also highlight areas of particular topicality where these rights have an impact such as: access to medicines; biotechnology; domain names and computer programs. The module will also consider, from a primarilyEuropean perspective, the relation between IP rights and free movement of goods.
Session titles
- International and European regulation of trade marks and patents
- Trade marks 1
- Trade marks 2
- Passing off
- Patents 1
- Patents 2
- Patents 3
- Breach of confidence
- Free movement of goods
- Current issues
Learning outcomes
By the end of this course the student will be able to:
- Appreciate the variety of institutions involved in the intellectual property field and understand their role and functions in policy making
- Understand the mechanisms available for registering rights and the reasons for the rules on which registration rests
- Identify the rights in practice, explain their scope and identify when those rights may be infringed
- Critically assess the development of the law and how changes in the law affect different interests
- Be aware of current developments in the law and be able to contribute in an informed manner to the ongoing debate as to the proper role of these rights.
Assessment
One Essay, 5000 words (60%); one piece of assessed course work (20%); participation in online activity (20%).
