Intellectual Property Concentration
J.D. Program: Intellectual Property Concentration
Seton Hall University School of Law offers a concentration in intellectual property law to J.D. students, and allows them to choose between two tracks: intellectual property or entertainment law. A concentration signifies a particular area of expertise and encompasses expansive but focused course offerings. Courses are taught by faculty with extensive scholarship and practical experience. Many students select intellectual property courses as electives. Others will complete the 13-credit concentration to prepare them for a career in patent, trademark or copyright law.
J.D. Intellectual Property Requirements
The intellectual property track is overseen by Professor David Opderbeck, Academic Director of the Gibbons Institute of Law, Science & Technology. The entertainment law track is overseen by Professor Brenda Saunders-Hampden. Students complete their first year of course requirements before taking intellectual property courses in their second and third years of study. Students may easily use the following guidelines before making their course selections. In addition, intellectual property course advisement sessions are held once a semester, usually just prior to registration should any students have concerns or questions. Students may also contact Helen Cummings, Administrator of Graduate Programs, with particular questions at helen.cummings@shu.edu / 973-642-8380.
A concentration form should be submitted in the student's penultimate semester. Upon graduation, the student will receive a certificate indicating he or she has completed the following concentration requirements:
- successful completion of three required survey courses: Copyright, Patent Law and Practice, and Trademark and Unfair Competition.
- completion of a certified AWR paper in either an Intellectual Property course, or on an intellectual property topic in any AWR course, provided that the topic has been approved by one of the directors.
- successful completion of a total of thirteen credits in the Intellectual Property track or fourteen credits in the Entertainment Law track with a GPA in those courses of 3.0 or better; the lists of permissible electives differ for the two tracks.
- for the Entertainment Law track only, successful completion of Entertainment Law.
Note: the Intellectual Property Course does not count toward the Intellectual Property Concentration.
THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY TRACK
The Intellectual Property track requires a total of thirteen credits, as follows:
Required Survey Courses:
Copyright (3) - INDL 8301
Patent Law and Practice (2) - INDL 8303
Trademark and Unfair Competition (3) - INDL 8302
Successful completion of the remaining credits from qualifying courses. The qualifying courses are:
Administrative Law (3) - PUBG 7807
Advanced Topics in Intellectual Property (3) - INDL 9308
Antitrust (3) - PUBG 8801
Biotechnology and the Law (2) - INDL 9319
Communications Law and Policy (2) - INDL 7310
Electronic Commerce (3) - INDL 7307
Independent Research (2) - WRTG 9142
Information Privacy Law (2 or 3) - INDL 9234
Intellectual Property Aspects or Pharmaceutical and Biotech Businesses (2) INDL 8310
Intellectual Property Licensing (2) - INDL 9315
Internet Law (3) - INDL 8309
Law and Genetics (2) - INDL 7312
Mass Media Law (2) - INDL 9323
Patent Claim Drafting (2) - INDL 9305
Technology, Human Rights and Equality (3) INDL 9235
Trademark Registration (2) - INDL 9322
United States Patent Application and Prosecution (2) - INDL 9310
Relevant moot court and writing competitions as available.
THE ENTERTAINMENT LAW TRACK
The Entertainment Law track requires a total of 14 credits, as follows:
Required Survey Courses:
Copyright (3) - INDL 8301
Entertainment Law (3) - INDL 7305
Patent Law and Practice (2) - INDL 8303
Trademark and Unfair Competition (3) - INDL 8302
Successful completion of the remaining credits from qualifying courses. The qualifying courses are:
Administrative Law (3) - PUBG 7807
Advanced Entertainment Law (2) - INDL 9314
Advanced Intellectual Property Theory (3) - INDL 9313
Advanced Topics in Intellectual Property (3) - INDL 9308
Advanced Topics in Sports Law (2) - INDL 9302
Antitrust (3) - PUBG 8801
Communications Law and Policy (2) - INDL 7310
Corporate Finance (3) - CORP 8132
Electronic Commerce (3) - INDL 7307
Entertainment Contracts, Negotiation & Drafting (2) - INDL 9312
Entertainment Law Externship (2) - EXTN 9180
Independent Research (2) - WRTG 9142
Information Privacy Law (3) - INDL 9234
Intellectual Property and Antitrust Law (2) - INDL 8305
Intellectual Property Licensing (2) - INDL 9315
Internet Law (3) - INDL 8309
Labor Law (3) - LABR 7102
Law in the Music Industry (2) - INDL 8312
Mass Media Law (2) - INDL 9323
Securities Regulation (3) - CORP 8131
Sports Law (3) - INDL 7308
Trademark Registration (2) - INDL 9322
Trademark Theory (3) - INDL 9316
Relevant moot court and writing competitions as available.
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW (PUBG7801)
3 credits. Lecture.
This course studies the theory of administrative actions; administrative process; agency organization; determination and promulgation of the administrative regulations; right to notice and hearing; enforcement; judicial review; standing; and the Administrative Procedure Act.
Note: Students cannot apply both this course and Administrative Health law (HLTH7500) towards degree requirements.
ADVANCED ENTERTAINMENT LAW (INDL9314)
2 credits. Seminar.
Prerequisite: Entertainment Law.
This seminar involves an in-depth look at certain areas of the entertainment and media industry introduced in the survey course such as television, music licensing and publishing as well as an in-depth look at areas not dealt with in the survey course, such as independent film production, news gathering, advertising, video games, character licensing, and gambling. Assigned reading, class discussion and presentations by various specialists will be used to explore current legal issues, legislation and litigation.
ADVANCED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY THEORY (INDL9313)
2 or 3 credits. Seminar.c Prerequisites: Intellectual Property, or Patent Law & Practice, Copyright and Trademark & Unfair Competition
This seminar focuses on the theoretical foundations for patent, copyright, and trademark law, including public goods theory,which is the traditional basis for patent and copyright law, and competition theory and search-cost theory, which are traditional bases for trademark law. This seminar focuses on these theories and the common ground shared by all theories of intellectual property, which is providing incentives for suppliers of intangible creations and preventing free riding by others.
ADVANCED TOPICS IN INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY (INDL9308)
2 credits. Seminar.
Prerequisite: Intellectual Property or Patent Law and Practice.
This seminar will focus on emerging issues in intellectual property law and policy, including digital rights management and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act; peer-to-peer networking; copyright term and online content; international patent policy, access to essential technologies, and indigenous cultural products; gene and other biotechnology patents; and patent policy with respect to generic medicines.
ADVANCED TOPICS IN SPORTS LAW (INDL9302)
2 or 3 credits. Seminar.
Prerequisite: Sports Law.
This seminar treats both amateur and professional athletics. For amateur athletics, it deals with administrative and regulatory functions, including rule making and enforcement of amateur athletic organizations and the rights of amateur athletes. For professional athletics, the seminar surveys rules concerning league governance, the contractual relationship between player and club, labor relations, antitrust aspects of restraints on player and franchise movement and the relationships among athletes, agents and media.
ANTITRUST (PUB8801)
2 credits. Lecture.
This course studies legal protection of the competitive system under the Sherman Act, Clayton Act, Federal Trade Commission Act and related legislation. It considers problems relating to monopoly power; "horizontal" restraints on competition such as price fixing and concerted refusals to deal; "vertical" restraints such as resale price maintenance, tying and exclusive dealing arrangements; and limitations on permissible mergers and joint ventures. It explores economic as well as legal implications of federal government regulation of corporations.
NOTE: Students cannot apply this course and Health Care Antitrust (HLTH9513) towards degree requirements.
BIOTECHNOLOGY AND THE LAW (INDL7315)
2 credits. Course.
Counseling new or small businesses on intellectual property issues is challenging. They have limited resources, and often have personnel who are not familiar with the intricacies of intellectual property laws. However, without effective counsel, they will fail to maximize the value of their own intellectual property and run the risk of being shut down because they violate someone else's rights. Using a hypothetical biotechnology company, this course will navigate a series of complex intellectual property issues that counsel for a start-up company will likely confront. For each of the topics, students will review the current state of the law and explore ways to respond to the concerns and questions of employees of the hypothetical company.
COMMUNICATIONS LAW AND POLICY (INDL7310)
2 credits. Lecture.
This lecture provides an intensive study of the law and public policy relating to communications, with special emphasis on telecommunications. We will study the history and structure of the telecommunications industry in the United States, and recent developments toward creating competition in formerly monopoly markets. We also will review the sources of communications law and policy (federal and state agencies and courts), explore a layman's understanding of the technical network fundamentals, and evaluate content issues. We will discuss practical client concerns as they evaluate entry into new lines of business and defending existing lines of business from competitive threat.
COPYRIGHT (INDL8301)
3 credits. Lecture.
This course covers all phases of common law and statutory copyright including works subject to protection; securing protection; rights of copyright holder and succession to those rights by agreement and inheritance; international problems; and fair use and infringement questions.
CORPORATE FINANCE (CORP8132)
3 credits. Lecture.
Prerequisite: Business Associations.
This course continues the study begun in Business Associations with emphasis on the financial aspects of the publicly held corporation. It includes: problems of enterprise and securities valuation; capital structure; the issuance and acquisition of securities; security holders' rights; dividends; structural change; mergers and acquisitions.
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE (INDL7307)
3 credits. Lecture.
This course will consider how developments in information technology affect commercial transactions. The course will consider issues related to information (including rules for protecting information, intellectual property and privacy) and various types of transactions in the electronic contexts (sales between businesses and/or consumers, website issues, and payments), as well as cross-border dispute-resolution issues. Particular emphasis will be placed on the social, political, and economic issues underlying those legal doctrines.
ENTERTAINMENT CONTRACT NEGOTIATION AND DRAFTING (INDL9312)
2 credits. Seminar.
Prerequisite: Entertainment Law.
In this seminar students develop contract negotiation and contract drafting skills through mock negotiations and contract drafting. The class will include lecture, material and practical experience, negotiation deal points, and then drafting the final contract. Contracts will be negotiated in the motion picture, theatrical, music, television and publishing fields.
ENTERTAINMENT LAW (INDL7305)
3 credits. Lecture.
This course is a general survey and analysis of substantive areas of law relating to the production, distribution and exhibition of products and services in the entertainment and media industries. Areas surveyed include music, film, television, cable, publishing, legitimate stage, the online entertainment industry and the regulation of attorneys, agents and managers. It treats the creation, ownership and regulation of entertainment speech with emphasis on the first amendment, defamation, the right of privacy, the right of publicity, copyright, trademark, unfair competition, the law of ideas, moral rights, theories of credit, contract law and sources of regulation of professionals who work in the entertainment and media industry.
ENTERTAINMENT LAW EXTERNSHIP (EXTN9180)
2 credits
Prerequisites: 3.0 GPA in Intellectual Property courses and Minimum Cumulative 2.6 GPA; Entertainment Law or Intellectual Property or Copyright or Law in the Music Industry. Significant industry experience may be considered in lieu of course prerequisites.
The Entertainment Law Externship Program provides students with the opportunity to extern in the Offices of Legal & Business Affairs at Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) at Warner Brothers Music, Sony-BMG Music, Universal Music Group, or MTV. All companies are located in New York City. Students are responsible for legal research and the preparation of memoranda regarding various performing rights in music publishing, contractual rights in the recording industry and entertainment litigation legal issues.
MTV offers externship opportunities in four separate and distinct offices:
- MTV, mtvU, Spike TV Business and Legal Affairs - The Department supports numerous MTVN channels by structuring, drafting, and negotiating a variety of agreements, (with particular emphasis on sweepstakes, contests, and promotions), primarily with the following business areas: Ad Sales, Integrated Marketing, Consumer Products Marketing, Affiliate Marketing, Online, Press, Retail, Production, Public Responsibility, Public Affairs, and Promotions.
- MTV Business and Legal Affairs - Negotiating and Drafting a wide variety of agreements for MTV’s development and production shows. Some agreements include, talent agreements, acquisition agreements, venue agreements, executive producer agreements, production services agreements, presenter and performer agreements, etc.
- MTV Business and Legal Affairs Digital- Supports the digital businesses across all MTVN channels, including content distribution and establishment and operation of social networking sites and vertical web sites.
- MTVN IS&T Legal - Is responsible for managing the legal based projects. Specifically, the interns will be working with the Rights Management group on the abstraction of contracts and implementation of the system. The intern will be directly involved with reviewing contracts to determine intellectual property Rights and abstracting and entering that information into the newly designed system.
Each externship (Fall, Spring or Summer) requires a total of 150 hours. Externships require students to attend 6 hours of classroom instruction, and to submit to the faculty director a total of 20 pages of written work product evidencing legal analysis in addition to 10 pages of reflection.
A resume, cover letter, unofficial transcript, and writing sample must be submitted to Stephanie Kauflin, Associate Director of Externship Programs, and Professor Brenda Saunders-Hampden, via email (stephanie.kauflin@shu.edu and brenda.hampden@shu.edu), no later than July 1st for the Fall semester, November 1st for the Spring semester, and March 1st for the Summer session. Your cover letter should be addressed to Professor Saunders-Hampden and must indicate the offices for which you are applying. Once received, each application will be reviewed to establish that the student applicant meets Seton Hall Law’s externship prerequisites. After eligibility is determined, the applicant’s materials will be forwarded to the selected companies, who will then proceed with their selection process which typically requires an interview. Once offered a position, please contact Stephanie Kauflin in the Office of Career Services regarding registration information. Please note: These externships are currently limited to three to five students per semester and students are registered on a first come-first served basis.
Note: It is possible that other entertainment organizations may be approved through Professor Brenda Saunders, in accordance with the faculty policy allowing externships for a specific category of entertainment companies. Students seeking approval for other companies must provide Professor Brenda Saunders and Stephanie Kauflin in the Office of Career Services with such a proposal through the application process and deadlines listed above.
This externship is graded on a Pass/D/Fail basis.
NOTE: Four credit maximum for all externships.
INDEPENDENT RESEARCH (WRTG9142)
2 credits.
Prerequisites: Minimum Cumulative 3.00 GPA and good academic standing.
This offering consists of faculty-directed research for one semester on a topic approved by a faculty member supervising the research and by a committee of the faculty. The resulting paper must be a minimum of 40 pages and is required to meet law review student publication standards. It must be defended before the Independent Research Committee. A student seeking to enroll in Independent Research must receive the consent of a full-time faculty sponsor and the Independent Research Committee prior to enrollment. Those students interested in registering for Independent Research must obtain the appropriate form from the Registrar's Office and return it with the required signatures before being permitted to register for the course. Registration must be completed no later than the Drop/Add period of the semester in which the course is taken.
NOTE: This course can only be taken once and is not open to first year and second year evening students.
INFORMATION PRIVACY LAW (INDL9234)
2 or 3 credits. Seminar.
In recent years new information technologies have greatly transformed our everyday lives. The effects of these technologies on our personal privacy have become a particularly pressing matter under constant scrutiny in both the popular discourse and the law-making process. This seminar will focus among other topics on: (1) Internet privacy, including issues related to anonymity, commercial profiling and spam; (2) Health and genetic privacy, including issues relating to medical records, confidentiality of physician-patient relationships, DNA databases and genetic discrimination; (3) Law enforcement privacy, including issues related to wiretapping, surveillance, and counter-terrorism and post 9/11 reactions. In the seminar we will examine the effect of technological change on our social conceptions of privacy and evaluate the legal reactions to these changes.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ASPECTS OF PHARMACEUTICAL AND BIOTECH BUSINESSES (INDL8310)
Prerequisite: Intellectual Property.
2 credits. Lecture.
This course focuses on the recent case law, relevant legislation, and underlying policies, related to intellectual property protection in the pharmaceutical and biotech industry. We will concentrate on key patent cases from the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and U.S. Supreme Court, and aspects of the FDA law that form the basis for IP protection in these industries. Recent patent cases, including those on enablement, written description, inherent anticipation, infringement under the doctrine of equivalents, inequitable conduct, and research tools, will be reviewed. We will also analyze the Hatch-Waxman Act and competition law that impact both the innovative and generic drug industries, and proposed legislation that is currently being considered by Congress that could dramatically affect these industries.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LICENSING (INDL9315)
2 credits. Seminar.
Prerequisite: Intellectual Property.
The seminar will provide a comprehensive study of all aspects of Intellectual Property licensing and related issues. Students will analyze and draft various trademark, copyright, music, software, patent and technology licenses, and develop related negotiation skills and litigation strategies. The focus will be practical and will show how value can be unleashed in Intellectual Property Assets through licensing.
INTERNET LAW (INDL8309)
3 credits. Lecture.
Recommended: Intellectual Property.
This course surveys legal issues related to the use and misuse of global electronic networks including the Internet. Topics to be discussed include: regulation of digital content; privacy and control of personal data; legal and constitutional implications of public key infrastructure; and regulation of electronic commerce.
LABOR LAW (LABR7102)
3 credits. Lecture.
This course analyzes the establishment, maintenance and survival of the collective bargaining relationship between union and management. It focuses on the National Labor Relations Act which, in conjunction with the Norris-La Guardia Act, governs union organizational campaigns, the process of collective bargaining, and economic tools of both sides, including strikes, lockouts, boycotts and picketing.
LAW & GENETICS (INDL7312)
2 credits. Lecture.
Rapid advances in genetics are having extensive effects on our life both within and outside the medical arena. This course will examine the legal transformations taking place in a broad range of legal fields to accommodate these technological innovations. Among the topics to be examined in this course are: (1) genetic testing in the clinical scenario, such as duty to warn issues; (2) Privacy and discrimination related to collection of information by insurers and employers and by the government; (3) Commercialization of genetic research, focusing on gene patents; and (4) Use of genetic information in the courtroom.
LAW IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY (INDL8312)
2 credits. Lecture.
Prerequisite: Entertainment Law
This course focuses on the daily legal issues facing attorneys in the music industry. It will consider the various legal relationships within a musical group and between the artist and his various representatives. It will then discuss the most heavily negotiated agreements in the music industry, beginning with demonstration, sample and producer agreements. The course will next explore legal pitfalls of production company agreements, and will then dissect various provisions of both recording and music publishing agreements. The course will then consider music industry unions and the American Federation of Musicians and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists impact of the artist and the record company. Finally, the course will discuss the legal issues facing music industry attorneys in the 21st century, with specific focus on digital transmission of music, down-loading of music over the internet and alternative methods of music delivery.
MASS MEDIA LAW (INDL9323)
2 credits. Seminar.
This seminar surveys the constitutional principles, laws and regulatory policies that shape the mass media. It has two principal goals: to engage students in a critical review of the substantive case law governing the gathering and dissemination of information by print, television and internet; and to facilitate an understanding of the adequacy of the constitutional protection which this body of law affords the nation's major media institutions.
Note: Students cannot apply both this course and The First Amendment in the Twenty-First Century (PUBR9184) towards degree requirements.
PATENT CLAIM DRAFTING (INDL9305)
2 credits. Seminar.
Prerequisite: Patent Law and Practice.
This drafting seminar will focus on the "claim" or "claims" appended to a patent specification. The claim defines the scope of the grant, or the technical extent of the exclusive privilege the patent accords to its owner. Claim drafting assignments will be distributed to the students before each class. Each student's work will be reviewed on an individual basis, with rewriting and revision as needed.
NOTE: Students are required to have a degree in engineering or a physical science.
PATENT LAW (INDL8303)
2 credits. Lecture.
This course undertakes an intensive examination of the nature of patents and questions of patent validity and procurement, primarily for those intending to specialize in the patent area in their future practice. It includes: nature of patent property; problems in the procurement of patents including filing date, obtention and maintenance; international practice and problems; patent office practice; problems of validity including novelty, utility and non-obviousness; and transfers of property rights in patents.
SECURITIES REGULATION (CORP8131)
3 credits. Lecture.
Prerequisite: Business Associations.
This course analyzes the statutes collectively referred to as the federal securities laws with emphasis on the Securities Act of 1933. Most of the course is devoted to a consideration of defining a security, registration of securities offerings, and exemptions from registration. Liability under the 1933 Act will also be addressed, as will registration of broker-dealers.
SPORTS LAW (INDL7308)
2 credits. Lecture.
A survey of the major topics in sports law. Special attention is given to the regulation of professional and amateur athletics, the organizational structure of sports leagues and associations, labor-management relations, international sports regulatory agencies, individual rights of athletes and spectators, and the application of tort and criminal law principles to sports. This course is designed for law students with an interest in the interrelationship of American sports and the legal system and not exclusively for those interested in careers as sports lawyers.
TECHNOLOGY, HUMAN RIGHTS, AND EQUALITY (INDL9235)
2 or 3 credits. Seminar.
This seminar will focus on recent legal efforts to restrict (and encourage) controversial medical technologies. Case studies will include 1) stem cell and genetic engineering research, 2) global access to "essential medicines" (e.g., AIDS treatments), and 3) Medicare coverage decisions (i.e., how this social insurance program decides whether to pay for advanced procedures). Readings will include basic journalistic and philosophic accounts of the controversies involved, and primary and secondary legal materials. Students with a background in intellectual property law, health care law, or administrative law should find the seminar particularly rewarding.
Seminar participants will be expected to write a paper advocating for or against a regulation (or proposed regulation) related to the seminar topic.
TRADEMARK AND UNFAIR COMPETITION (INDL8302)
3 credits. Lecture.
This course treats common law and statutory protection of ideas, trade secrets, and trademarks, including: acquisition and loss of trademark rights; registration and licensing; problems of infringement, dilution, and misappropriation of trademarks; fair use and Internet use of trademarks; and related remedies.
TRADEMARK REGISTRATION (INDL9322)
2 credits. Seminar.
Prerequisite: Intellectual Property or Trademark and Unfair Competition
Federal registration provides important benefits to trademark owners. Registration work is a staple of many law firm and in-house intellectual property practices. This class will cover the basics of trademark registration practice, from selection of a mark and initial screening through opposition proceedings. Assignments will include hands on drafting of opinion letters, registration papers, and pleadings drawn from real-world examples.
TRADEMARK THEORY (INDL9316)
2 or 3 credits. Seminar.
Prerequisite: Intellectual Property or Trademark and Unfair Competition
This seminar will discuss the theoretical foundations of trademark law, how the structure of trademark law reflects various goals the law is designed to meet, and how the theory and structure of trademark law compares to the theory and structure of copyright and patent law.
UNITED STATES PATENT APPLICATION PREPARATION AND PROSECUTION (INDL9310)
2 credits. Seminar.
Prerequisite: Patent Law and Practice.
This seminar develops the writing and analytical skills required to draft applications for United States patents. Patent claim drafting skills are not undertaken in this course. Patent prosecution techniques, however, including evaluation of Patent and Trademark Office Official Actions and preparation of responses to these Official Actions are studied. There also is practice in drafting appellate briefs for submission to the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences.
NOTE: Students are required to have a degree in engineering or a physical science.