The America Invents Act (AIA) is the most significant reform of US patent law in over sixty years. It brings in its wake numerous procedural changes that will transform how patent attorneys approach their filing and litigation strategies, in addition to difficulties that are certain to arise due to the continuing application of the current patent law. Case law from the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC), which has exclusive jurisdiction over patent cases emanating from all the district courts, already illustrate some of the issues that the AIA is likely to give rise to. Following the implementation of the AIA, the CAFC will have an even greater influence over the development of patent jurisprudence. This course will examine some of the more significant changes under the AIA through the use of statutory interpretation and in-depth analysis of CAFC case precedents. It will complement the existing doctrinal patent law courses and develop students' awareness of the intricacies of patent practice as well as their skills in statutory analysis and case law interpretation.

This course will examine the precepts of trademark and unfair competition law. We will investigate issues of ownership, registration, goodwill, misappropriation, infringement, and dilution in the context of words, phrases, symbols, slogans, product design, and trade dress. The course will also explore related issues such as false and comparative advertising, rights of publicity, and fair use. Hybrid Juris Doctor students cannot take this course for an S/U grade.

E-Commerce and the Law is designed to encourage examination of the rapidly evolving areas of the law that seek to resolve the issues of ownership, privacy, liability, and access (among others) as they relate to information and knowledge technologies. Commerce, the sum of individual transactions that drive our society and create value, has been molded and sometimes disrupted by the opportunities and challenges presented by advances in information technology. One could say that this course is an overview and look into the future of law for the ever-changing digital and information age economy, and the legal environment that will define and shape legal practice in the coming decades. In many ways this course supplements and builds on the subjects in the classical legal curriculum with examples of how changes in technology are manifesting themselves in new legal problems and issues for the economy and society.

The internet has changed almost every area of modern life, and the law is no exception. This course studies the computer and network technologies underlying the internet, how those technologies are challenging the assumptions underlying pre-internet law, and how judges, policy makers, and private actors have responded to those technologies. Topics covered typically include jurisdiction, online speech, intermediary and platform liability, privacy, computer abuse laws, and net neutrality.