Handbook

This course is designed to give postgraduates a comprehensive overview and working understanding of intellectual property law. Assuming no prior knowledge of intellectual property, the course is suitable for students who wish to study intellectual property law for the first time, those who have studied intellectual property abroad and want to learn how it operates in Australia, and those who studied it some time ago and are seeking to update their knowledge of this fast-changing area of law.

Intellectual property is an important area of commercial legal practice and is vital to many industries. This course introduces students to the statutory provisions and common law relating to Australian intellectual property. For each topic, the course gives consideration to the subject matter that is protected, the preconditions for protection, and the nature of infringement. Other matters (such as remedies, competition law and international protection) may be dealt with briefly but are not examined in detail.

As far as possible in an intensive overview, this course focuses on the commercial and business aspects of intellectual property. By the end of the course, students should be able to identify copyright, trademark and passing off, designs and patent law issues, and make an informed decision about how to proceed in advising a client.

This course meets pre-requisite requirements for LAWS3057/JURD7357 Advanced Intellectual Property Policy and Practice, which is recommended for students who seek to further their knowledge of intellectual property policy issues and/or to deepen their skills applying intellectual property law in practice.

  Main Topics

• Introduction to Intellectual Property
• Copyright, including Moral Rights
• Confidential information
• s.18 Australian Consumer Law, formerly s.52 Trade Practices Act 1974)
• Passing off
• Trade marks
• Designs
• Patents