School of Law

Compulsory Modules

Patents and Copyright provides you with a thorough grounding in the law of patents and copyright. You will cover the key principles of patents and copyright, and certain major cases that helped to shape the modern law of these intellectual property rights and their convergence towards harmonised international standards of protection. 

Trade Marks, Geographical Indications, Designs and Trade Secrets covers the key principles of trade marks, geographical indications, designs and trade secrets. You will also consider the economic and philosophical rationales behind these concepts and investigate why these rights are so controversial in today's globalised economy. 

Intellectual Property Management introduces you to key contemporary debates relating to the application of intellectual property law in terms of the conferring of IP rights and the managerial strategies employed to protect them. You will explore the creation, acquisition and management of rights relating to the ownership of creative, marketing, information and technological IP assets. 

Research Methods focuses on the mechanics of the research process: how to formulate research questions, design research strategies and generally go about the process of 'researching.'

Dissertation allows you to tailor your own programme of training and research in consultation with a member of staff drawn from the school's MA/PhD supervisory panel.

Optional modules

• Cybercrime: Computers and Crime in the Information Age
• International E-Commerce Law
• Intellectual Property in the Digital Environment: The Internet and File Sharing
• Contemporary Issues in Intellectual Property: Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Cultural Expressions
• Contemporary Issues in Intellectual Property: Health, Food and Biotechnology