Curriculum and Degrees
The Clinic and Center offer several courses of study within the fields of Intellectual Property and Patent law. What follows is a list of courses that are divided by category and a description of the specialized degrees with which they are associated. Please note that the courses listed may not be offered in the current academic year, but may instead be offered in subsequent years. Please check the Registrar's course directory to ensure the current availability of a particular course.
Testimonial:
"Through Washington University’s LL.M. program, I gained true appreciation for the complexities and nuances of intellectual property, both in terms of U.S. law and on an international scale. The program drives students to apply their understanding in the context of today’s global business environment. Our economy increasingly relies on intangible assets (as much as tangible assets such as buildings, equipment, and inventory). The expertise I gained from the LL.M. program has made me a better attorney and business professional. In my role as a commercial transaction professional in the telecommunications industry, this expertise has contributed to my effectiveness. I recommend Washington U.’s LL.M. program to any seasoned attorney serious about leveraging their current capabilities and past experience with updated expertise.” ~ Piper Fuhr, IP/TL LL.M.’02 Commercial Contract Manager, Motorola, Inc.
Introductory Courses & Advanced Seminars
- Copyrights & Related Rights
- Patent & Trade Secret Law
- Trademarks & Unfair
- Competition Law
- Cyberspace Law
- Contracts & IP Seminar
- Law & Economics of Patent Seminar
- International IP Law
Small Enrollment Practical Skills Courses
- Trademark Practice
- IP Litigation
- Advanced IP Litigation
- IP Licensing
- IP Licensing & E-Commerce
- Planning & Drafting
- Patent Drafting & Prosecution
- Entertainment Law Planning & Drafting
- Management & Evaluation of IP Assets
- Media Litigation
- Sports Law Planning and Drafting
Related Courses & Seminars
- Administrative Law
- Antitrust
- Biodiversity, Biotechnology & the Protection of Traditional Knowledge
- Theory of Property Rights
- Genetics Ethics, Law & Policy Seminar
- Perspectives on Property Law Seminar
- International Investment Law Seminar
Master of Laws in Intellectual Property and Technology Law (LL.M.)
The Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree in Intellectual Property and Technology Law is a one-year graduate degree program that responds to the demand for knowledgeable and skilled intellectual property professionals who have already earned a basic law degree. The Intellectual Property and Technology Law curriculum allows students to study introductory and advanced intellectual property law and to scrutinize the politics affecting those areas of the law under the guidance of leading scholars in the field. Students also participate in practical skills courses taught in small groups by teams of experienced intellectual property lawyers. In order to be admitted to this program, students must either have graduated from an accredited U.S. law school or have an undergraduate law degree from a foreign institution of higher education or the equivalent thereof in government experience and training in intellectual property law.
Master of Juridical Studies (M.J.S.)
The M.J.S. is a one-year degree program designed for individuals in other career fields who would benefit from a limited legal training and do not require a professional degree. It is meant for those who do not have formal legal training. This degree is the equivalent of an M.A. or M.S. degree in other divisions of Washington University. A student may choose to focus on IP courses in this degree program.
Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree with a concentration in Intellectual Property and Technology Law
The Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree is the basic professional degree required for the practice of law in the United States (except for those foreign students who have an equivalent undergraduate law degree from a university in another country, in which case a U.S. LL.M. degree will suffice). The J.D. degree requires a three-year course of studies, the first year of which consists of certain required foundational law courses. In the second and third year, all courses, except a required course in Professional Responsibility, are elective, thus enabling a J.D. degree student to develop a concentration in intellectual property law. That concentration might focus on a particular body of intellectual property law (e.g. patents, copyrights, or trademarks and unfair competition) or a particular phase of intellectual property practice (e.g. administrative practice before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, transactional intellectual property law, or litigation). Course offerings include not only basic, introductory courses and advanced policy-oriented courses and seminars, but also a broad range of limited-enrollment practical skills courses taught by teams of adjunct professors who are also practicing intellectual property lawyers.
Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D.) degree with a concentration in Intellectual Property and Technology Law
The Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D.) degree is the legal equivalent of a Ph.D. degree, and is thus a highly selective degree program for students primarily interested in pursuing an academic career in law teaching. The J.S.D. degree requires a minimum of two years of law study, including one year of coursework leading to an LL.M. degree (either as a part of or prior to enrollment at Washington University). It also requires one year in residence doing full-time research under the supervision of a law faculty member who has agreed to serve as the student’s dissertation director and chair the dissertation committee, which must approve the dissertation as a condition of graduation.
Testimonial:
“Professor McManis arranged for me to work this past summer with the University of Western Cape in South Africa. I helped to develop documents that clarify how intellectual property in South Africa, particularly South African plants with medicinal value, can be shared with research institutions and how the rights of indigenous peoples— the knowledgeholders— will be protected. It’s exciting because South Africa is drafting new legislation for protecting the intellectual property rights of traditional knowledge; this is new territory for researchers and for the South African people. This project is similar to the work of the new Intellectual Property & Business Formation Legal Clinic.” ~ Edward Kim, J.D.’06