This course covers legal strategy and best practices for obtaining, evaluating, and monetizing patents, primarily in the US, but also with international considerations. Students learn to tailor their patent activities based on the size and stiuation of the relevant organization. Examples will focus on the differences between the needs of: a small entrepreneurial startup , a growing small-to-medium sized enterprise, a large established commerical business, and a licensing-based entity. Patent application claim techniques, filing decisions, cost concerns, pre-litigation opinions, cease and desist letters, and due dilligence methods will be compared and contrasted based on the goals and competitive positions of the organization. Freedom to operate steps to avoid litigation will also be covered. Pre- or Coreq: Patent Law.

This course will focus on general licensing concepts and principles, as well as more creative licensing arrangements involving the licensing of patents, trade secrets and trademarks. The course will provide an emphasis on understanding and drafting key licensing clauses, valuation and royalty determinations, antitrust and misuse problems, international licensing, negotiation strategies including understanding the role of the lawyer and client, and administration of license agreements. The course will address various licensing scenarios including licensing in (your client licenses from a third party), licensing out (your client licenses to a third party), university licensing and collaborative licensing arrangements. The course may involve legal research in select areas and hands-on negotiation as part of the grading. A technological background is not a prerequisite, but preferred. Some knowledge of intellectual property law (patents, trade secrets and trademarks) is necessary for this course. Eligibility: Open to all except 1Ls. Course format: lecture. Grading: other (see syllabus), 100%. This course may be taken for an S/U grade.