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Patent Practice (LAWS70060)

Graduate coursework level 7Points: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)

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Overview

Availability(Quotas apply)
September
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This subject follows on from Patent Law (which is a prerequisite) and provides students with the basic knowledge and skills required for the filing, prosecution and maintenance of an application for protection under the Australian and New Zealand patents legislation, for both local and international inventions. The lecturers are a team of experienced patent attorneys and patent lawyers. The subject meets the Trans-Tasman IP Attorneys Board (TTIPAB) requirements for 'Topic Group F’.

Principal topics include:

  • Australian patent legislation and practice
    • Patents Act 1990; Patents Regulations 1991
    • Kinds of patent application: provisional, complete, standard, divisional, patent of addition, PCT national phase, convention, and innovation
    • Patent application filing and prosecution: searching, filing, examination, opposition, grounds, practice and procedures, grant and re-examination
    • Amendment of patent specifications and other documents: allowable amendments, clerical errors and obvious mistakes
    • Duration of patent protection: continuation and renewal fee requirements, lapsing and cessation, restoration of rights and extensions of term for pharmaceutical patents
    • The Register of Patents: recordal of assignments, licences, mortgages and changes of name and amendments to the Register
  • New Zealand patent legislation and practice
    • Patent Act 1953 and Patent Act 2013; Patent Regulation 1954 and Patent Regulation 2014
    • Key practice differences from Australia including transitional provisions between 1953 and 2013 Acts, patentability exclusions, divisional practice, examination deadlines, double patenting, poisonous priority, self-collision, and prosecution strategy
    • Patent practice: kinds of patent application, filing, examination, opposition, grounds, practice and procedures, grant and re-examination, amendment of patent specifications, continuation and renewal fee requirements, restoration of rights, recordal of assignments, licences, mortgages, and changes of name
  • International conventions and agreements
  • Patentability overseas
  • Basic considerations of United States and European patent law
  • Applications under the Patent Cooperation Treaty, filing applications, international phase and entry of national and regional phase
  • Circuit layouts legislation (Circuit Layouts Act 1989 (Cth))
  • Plant breeder's rights legislation (Plant Breeder's Rights Act 1994 (Cth))

Intended learning outcomes

A student who has successfully completed this subject will:



  • Have an advanced and integrated understanding of Australian patent practice including filing, prosecution and maintenance of applications for patent protection under the Australian Patents Act 1990 (Cth) for local and overseas inventions
  • Have a clear understanding of New Zealand patent practice, and in particular a knowledge of key differences and patent prosecution strategies between New Zealand and Australia
  • Have an advanced and integrated understanding of the filing and prosecution of patent applications under the Patent Co-operation Treaty 
  • Have the cognitive and technical skills to advise on the obtaining of overseas patent protection for local clients
  • Have the cognitive and technical skills to research and apply established principles to the filing and prosecution of patent applications in Australia, New Zealand and overseas, particularly USA and Europe
  • Have the cognitive and technical skills to critically examine, analysis, interpret, apply and assess Australian and New Zealand patent law in relation to complex issues
  • Have the communication skills to clearly articulate and convey knowledge, skills and ideas in the field of patent law to specialist and non-specialist audiences
  • Be able to understand the purpose, intent and scope of circuit layouts rights protection in the Circuit Layouts Act 1989 (Cth)
  • Be able to understand the purpose, intent and scope of plant variety rights protection in the Plant Breeders Rights Act 1994 (Cth)
  • Be able to demonstrate autonomy, expert judgement, and responsibility as a practitioner or learner in the field of patent law.

Last updated: 31 January 2024

Eligibility and requirements

Prerequisites

Admission into a relevant Melbourne Law Masters program

AND

Code Name Teaching period Credit Points
LAWS70021 Patent Law
May (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5

or an equivalent subject, or appropriate practical experience in this field.

Corequisites

None

Non-allowed subjects

None

Recommended background knowledge

Applicants without legal qualifications should note that subjects are offered in the discipline of law at an advanced graduate level. While every effort will be made to meet the needs of students trained in other fields, concessions will not be made in the general level of instruction or assessment. Most subjects assume the knowledge usually acquired in a degree in law (LLB, JD or equivalent). Applicants should note that admission to some subjects in the Melbourne Law Masters will be dependent upon the individual applicant’s educational background and professional experience.

Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)

The University of Melbourne is committed to providing students with reasonable adjustments to assessment and participation under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326). Students are expected to meet the core participation requirements for their course. These can be viewed under Entry and Participation Requirements for the course outlines in the Handbook.

Further details on how to seek academic adjustments can be found on the Student Equity and Disability Support website: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/student-equity/home

Last updated: 31 January 2024

Assessment

DescriptionTimingPercentage

Take-home examination 

  • 6000 words
25 - 28 October 2024100%
Hurdle requirement: A minimum of 75% attendance is required.Throughout the teaching periodN/A

Last updated: 31 January 2024

Quotas apply to this subject

Dates & times

  • September
    Principal coordinatorMark Summerfield
    CoordinatorsDavid Tadgell and Steve Gledhill
    Mode of deliveryOn Campus (Parkville)
    Contact hours34 hours
    Total time commitment150 hours
    Pre teaching start date12 August 2024
    Pre teaching requirementsPlease refer to the Reading Guide on the LMS subject page for confirmation of which resources need to be read and what other preparation is required before the teaching period commences.
    Teaching period 9 September 2024 to 13 September 2024
    Last self-enrol date16 August 2024
    Census date10 September 2024
    Last date to withdraw without fail 4 October 2024
    Assessment period ends28 October 2024

    September contact information

    Lecturers

    Mark Summerfield (Coordinator)
    Steve Gledhill
    John Landells
    Karen Sinclair
    David Tadgell
    Nik Ramchand

    Email: law-masters@unimelb.edu.au
    Phone: 13 MELB (13 6352), International: +(61 3) 9035 5511
    Website: law.unimelb.edu.au

What do these dates mean

Visit this webpage to find out about these key dates, including how they impact on:

  • Your tuition fees, academic transcript and statements.
  • And for Commonwealth Supported students, your:
    - Student Learning Entitlement. This applies to all students enrolled in a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP).

    Subjects withdrawn after the census date (including up to the ‘last day to withdraw without fail’) count toward the Student Learning Entitlement.

Additional delivery details

This subject has a quota of 30 students.

Enrolment is on a 'first in' basis. Waitlists are maintained for subjects that are fully subscribed.

Students should note priority of waitlisted places in subjects will be given as follows:

  • To currently enrolled Graduate Diploma and Masters students with a satisfactory record in their degree
  • To other students enrolling on a single subject basis, eg Community Access Program (CAP) students, cross-institutional study and cross-faculty study.

Please refer to the Melbourne Law Masters website for further information about the management of subject quotas and waitlists.

Melbourne Law School may reserve places in a subject for incoming international cohorts or where a subject is core to a specialisation with limited alternate options.

Last updated: 31 January 2024

Further information

  • Texts

    Prescribed texts

    Specialist materials will be made available via the LMS in the pre-teaching period.

  • Related Handbook entries

    This subject contributes to the following:

    TypeName
    CourseMaster of Laws
    CourseGraduate Diploma in Intellectual Property Law
    CourseMaster of Intellectual Property Law
    CourseMaster of Commercial Law
  • Links to additional information

    law.unimelb.edu.au

  • Available through the Community Access Program

    About the Community Access Program (CAP)

    This subject is available through the Community Access Program (also called Single Subject Studies) which allows you to enrol in single subjects offered by the University of Melbourne, without the commitment required to complete a whole degree.

    Entry requirements including prerequisites may apply. Please refer to the CAP applications page for further information.

    Additional information for this subject

    If required, please contact law-masters@unimelb.edu.au for subject coordinator approval.

  • Available to Study Abroad and/or Study Exchange Students

    This subject is available to students studying at the University from eligible overseas institutions on exchange and study abroad. Students are required to satisfy any listed requirements, such as pre- and co-requisites, for enrolment in the subject.

Last updated: 31 January 2024