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European Intellectual Property Law (LAWS70418)
Graduate coursework level 7Points: 12.5Not available in 2024
Overview
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This subject provides an outline of some of the more important or notable features of European intellectual property (IP) regimes and reform proposals, selected either for their unique nature or their comparative relevance to Australian law. The subject will deal with a variety of sources of European IP law, including: European Union (EU) Directives and Regulations on or relating to IP; non-EU IP treaties (such as the European Patent Convention), and domestic IP law in European countries, in particular the United Kingdom, Germany and France.
Principal topics will include:
- An overview of the European IP regime
- The European patent system under the European Patent Convention and the European unitary patent initiative
- Key features of European patent law: patentable subject matter (including the impacts of the 1998 EU Biotechnology Directive); claim construction, inventive step and sufficiency/claim support
- The EU supplementary protection certificate (SPC) system
- EU laws specifically protecting databases and software, and the ramifications of those protections upon copyright protection generally
- European legal protections of authors’ moral rights
- European graduated response initiatives directed at internet-based copyright infringement
- The registered and unregistered European Community designs regimes
- The relationship between European designs and artistic copyright protection
- European laws extending trade mark protection to mark dilution and unfair advantage
- Internet-related trade mark infringement in settings such as online marketplaces and search engines
- Trade mark issues relating to comparative advertising and parallel importation
- The interface between the European IP regime and European competition/free trade protections, in particular the question of exhaustion of rights within the EU.
Intended learning outcomes
A student who has successfully completed this subject should:
- Understand the main sources of European intellectual property law;
- Understand the main issues of importance arising from European intellectual property law;
- Understand the comparative relevance of European intellectual property law to Australian law;
- Understand the interface between European intellectual property law and European competition/free trade protections.
Last updated: 10 November 2023
Eligibility and requirements
Prerequisites
None
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: 10 November 2023
Assessment
| Description | Timing | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
Take home examination | 100% |
Last updated: 10 November 2023
Dates & times
Not available in 2024
Time commitment details
The pre-teaching period commences four weeks before the subject commencement date. From this time, students are expected to access and review the Reading Guide that will be available from the LMS subject page and the subject materials provided by the subject coordinator, which will be available from Melbourne Law School. Refer to the Reading Guide for confirmation of which resources need to be read and what other preparation is required before the teaching period commences.
Additional delivery details
This subject has a quota of 30 students. Please refer to the Melbourne Law Masters website for further information about the management of subject quotas and waitlists.
Last updated: 10 November 2023
Further information
- Texts
Prescribed texts
Core subject materials will be provided free of charge to all students. Some subjects require further texts to be purchased. Details regarding any prescribed texts will be provided prior to the commencement of the subject.
- Related Handbook entries
This subject contributes to the following:
Type Name Course Master of Intellectual Property Law Course Master of Laws Course Master of Commercial Law Course Graduate Diploma in Intellectual Property 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-admissions@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: 10 November 2023