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Graduate Program in Intellectual Property Law
Director: Professor Gerald Tschura
tschurag@cooley.edu
(248) 751-7800, ext. 7759
Director: Professor David C. Berry
berryd@cooley.edu
(248) 751-7800, ext. 7750
Office of Graduate and Extended Programs:
LLM@cooley.edu
(517) 371-5140, ext. 2703
LL.M. Degree Requirements
Distance Education
J.D./LL.M. Joint Degree in Intellectual Property
Guest (Non-Degree) Student Status
Required Courses
Elective Courses
Externship Opportunities
Faculty
Advisory Board
Course Schedules
Thomas M. Cooley Law School 's Graduate Intellectual Property degree prepares practitioners to start a career as an intellectual property attorney, or to focus an existing practice on IP law. The program is designed both for attorneys with a scientific or engineering background seeking to gain the skills necessary to succeed on the Patent Office Registration Examination, and for attorneys with non-technical backgrounds seeking to become proficient in copyright, trademark, licensing, and e-commerce issues. Through an experienced faculty and innovative, practical instruction, the program provides a sound foundation in intellectual property law while exploring the latest emerging developments of technology law.
The Graduate Program in Intellectual Property Law offers busy professionals an opportunity to earn an LL.M. degree in a manner, pace, and location conducive to family and work schedules. Students have maximum flexibility in selecting the location at which they attend courses because the LL.M. degree can be earned at any of Cooley's three Michigan campuses in Lansing, Auburn Hills, and Grand Rapids.
Students enrolled in the Graduate Program in Intellectual Property Law have the option of pursuing their degree in the manner most suited to their style of learning whether it is traditional classroom, web-based or a combination of both. Cooley uses state-of-the-art technology to offer traditional classroom courses at its three campuses by linking its classrooms by videoconferencing.
Web-based courses are offered which provide unrivaled flexibility. Just like the traditional classroom courses, the web-based classes are designed to ensure the scholarly study of intellectual property and interaction with the Cooley academic community.
LL.M. Degree Requirements
All graduate students must successfully complete each of the required courses and a sufficient number of elective courses to earn 24 credits. Students may take a maximum of 18 of the 24 credits in a web-based format. To build on the foundation of community and scholarship, web-based students are required to participate in six credits in a traditional classroom format. The LL.M. degree can be completed in one year combining web-based and traditional classroom courses.
The curriculum consists of three-credit hour required courses plus a number of two-credit hour elective courses. One-credit hour electives may be offered on occasion. Up to two credit hours of directed study and up to four credit hours of an externship may be substituted for an equivalent number of credit hours of elective classroom instruction, upon approval. The Master's Thesis/Research Project may be undertaken as an elective. Course credit is not given for a grade below "C." Up to two courses may be retaken in which the graduate student has received a grade less than "B."
Distance Education
The Graduate Program in Intellectual Property Law offers courses utilizing videoconferencing and the Internet.
Graduate students may attend courses via videoconferencing at Cooley's Lansing, Auburn Hills, and Grand Rapids campuses. A videoconference course is taught on a specific day and time in specially equipped classrooms. Faculty teach from a designated location to Cooley's other campuses. Students and faculty see and hear each other with two-way audio and video interaction.
Certain graduate intellectual property courses are offered via the web in on-demand computer based learning. Courses are faculty-led and utilize an online course management system. Students will generally be required to participate in weekly assignment postings, text readings, online research, bulletin board discussions, chat sessions, virtual office hours, and virtual study groups.
Carefully assess whether you possess the traits and habits for success in distance education study. Click on the link to take the self-assessment "Are You Web-Ready?" Remember that not all graduate intellectual property courses are offered in a distance education format (videoconferencing and web) so check the Graduate Program course schedule for options. Also, make sure that you review the Graduate Program in Intellectual Property Law rules related to distance education.
Click on the links for more details and program requirements.
J.D./LL.M. Joint Degree in Intellectual Property
Cooley Law School students have the opportunity to earn a J.D. and LL.M. in less time through the J.D./LL.M. joint degree program. The joint degree program in intellectual property allows select Cooley students to be "provisionally admitted" into the LL.M. Program while still working to obtain their Cooley J.D. Joint degree students can take up to nine credits of LL.M. coursework in their chosen area before they complete their juris doctor degree. The credits will count toward both degrees, permitting these students to save significant time and money while obtaining the knowledge, skills, and credentials for a successful law practice.
For more information about the J.D./LL.M. Joint Degree Program, click on the link.
J.D./LL.M. Joint Degree Program Application (pdf)
Guest (Non-Degree) Student Status
A guest (non-degree) student may be admitted to Cooley's Graduate Program and earn up to eight credits without earning the LL.M. degree. Click on the link for more information about non-degree guest student status. Please note that admission as a guest (non-degree) student does not guarantee admission into the program as an LL.M. degree seeking student.
Guest (Non-Degree) Student Application (pdf)
Required Courses
• Copyright Law and Practice (3 cr.)
• Licensing of Intellectual Property (3 cr.)
• Patent Law (3 cr.)
• Trademark & Unfair Competition (3 cr.)
Elective Courses
• Advanced Copyright Law (2 cr.)
• Advanced Patent Law (2 cr.)
• Advanced Seminar in Licensing and Negotiations (1 cr.)
• Alternative Dispute Resolution (1 cr.)
• Advanced Trademark & Unfair Competition Law (2 cr.)
• Antitrust Law and Misuse of Intellectual Property (2 cr.)
• Art, Cultural Heritage, and the Law (2 cr.)
• Biotechnology and Intellectual Property Law (2 cr.)
• Business Franchise Law and Practice (2 cr.)
• Computer Law (2 cr.)
• Directed Study (up to 2 cr.)
• E-Commerce Law (2 cr.)
• Entertainment and Media Law (2 cr.)
• Expert Witnesses and Technical Evidence (2 cr.)
• Externship (up to 4 cr.)
• Intellectual Property in China and the Pacific Rim (2 cr.)
• Intellectual Property in the European Union (2 cr.)
• Intellectual Property Capital Management and Financing (2 cr.)
• Intellectual Property Due Diligence and Risk Management (2 cr.)
• Intellectual Property Under the Bankruptcy Code (1 cr.)
• International Copyright Law (1 cr.)
• International Patent Law (2 cr.)
• International Trademark Law (2 cr.)
• Patent Office Practice I - Patent Prosecution (2 cr.)
• Patent Office Practice II - Advanced Patent Prosecution (2 cr.)
• Patent Litigation (2 cr.)
• Privacy Laws and Rights of Publicity (2 cr.)
• Taxation of Intellectual Property (2 cr.)
• Trade Secrets Law (2 cr.)
Click for course descriptions.
Externship Opportunities
The Graduate Program at Thomas M. Cooley Law School permits students who are selected as externs to participate in activities or studies away from the law school and receive credit when the educational objectives of the program are met. Click on the link for more information about LL.M. externships.
Faculty
Click on the link to read the biographies of the Graduate Program in Intellectual Property Law faculty.
Advisory Board
Click on the link for the membership of the Graduate Program in Intellectual Property Law Advisory Board.
Course Schedules
Trinity (Summer) Term 2008 (tentative)
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This Page was last updated on:
08/27/2008