Intellectual Property Law
Master of Laws (LL.M.) Program

Recent News

Gerald T. Tschura, Graduate Program
IP Law Director, Lecturer for INTA Academic Program

May 4-5, 2013 - Gerald T. Tschura, Professor and Director, Graduate Program IP Law was a lecturer at the International Trademark Association (INTA) Academic Course on International Trademark Law, held in Dallas, Texas in conjunction with the INTA Annual Meeting.

2013 Michigan Innovation and IP Legal Writing Competition

The State Bar of Michigan, Intellectual Property Section and the Cooley Law School Graduate Program in Intellectual Property Law are co-sponsoring the Michigan Innovation and IP Legal Writing Competition. 

The Competition will recognize outstanding student legal scholarship in the fields of innovation law, intellectual property law, and related subjects. This is the third year that the IPLS and Cooley have presented the competition.

Students enrolled in J.D. degree programs at any ABA-accredited Michigan law school during the period May 1, 2012 to May 1, 2013 are eligible to enter the competition. Download the IP Legal Writing Competition announcement (pdf) describing the Competition Rules, prizes, and entry deadline.

The deadline for submitting papers is May 15, 2013.

Intellectual property is a rapidly evolving field of law, including subjects such as patent, copyright, trade secrets, trademark and unfair competition law, and licensing and related IP transactions. Intellectual property plays an important role in the economic expansion of the Michigan economy. The Competition encourages law students to explore these issues in their competition submissions.

For more information, please contact Anna Budde, State Bar IPLS Chair, at abudde@quinnlawgroup.com or Prof. David C. Berry at berryd@cooley.edu.

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The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Announces Location for Elijah J. McCoy Satellite Office in Detroit - Riverfront office space confirmed; Agency targets July 2012 opening.

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Intellectual Property Law Program Earns Top Ranking in National Report

March 20, 2012 – Thomas M. Cooley Law School's intellectual property (IP) law curriculum has earned a top ranking in a recent independent report published by researchers at the William Mitchell Law School. TheMitchell Report on Intellectual Property Curricula ranks the strength of the IP law curricula at all 222 U.S. law schools. Cooley's IP curriculum ranked first nationally in IP courses and second in number of IP course categories. [full story]

IP Events

Why an LL.M. In IP Law? 

Intellectual Property law is one of the most rapidly expanding field of legal practice. Once confined to "niche" practices, IP law now permeates the affairs of corporations and organizations of every size and description. Cooley's Graduate Intellectual Property law Program prepares practitioners to launch their
career as an iP lawyer, or to focus an existing practice on intellectual property law.

Distance Ed and Online IP Option

The Program is designed both for attorneys with scientific or engineering background seeking to gain the skills necessary to practice patent law, including succeeding on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's Registration Examination, and for attorneys with non-technical backgrounds seeking to become
proficient in copyright, trademark, licensing, and e-commerce issues.

[ more ]

IP Notes

Supreme Court Upholds First Sale Doctrine in Imported Textbook Case

Posted March 26, 2013, by Prof. Tschura
In a much anticipated decision, the Supreme Court ruled (6-3) that the first sale doctrine which permits the owner of a lawful copy of a copyrighted work to resell such copies without the permission of the copyright holder, applies equally to owners who have acquired or imported legitimate copies manufactured and sold abroad. [read more ]

Supreme Court Limits Federal Court Role in Patent-Related Disputes

Posted March 13, 2013, by Prof. Berry
In February's 9-0 decision in Gunn v. Minton, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a state law action that includes a substantive issue of federal patent law must be heard in state court, not federal court. [read more ]

Cooley Patent Law Courses Focus On Changes Resulting From AIA

Posted July 18, 2012, by Prof. Berry
On September 16, 2011, President Barrack Obama signed into law the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act ("AIA"). The AIA was the culmination of efforts over many years to pass legislation to reform the U.S. patent system. [read more ]