Patents, copyrights, and the law of intellectual property

Lectures: 2 sessions / week, 1.5 hours / session

There are no prerequisites for this class.

This subject is an intensive introduction to the law of intellectual property, with major emphasis on U.S. patent law. The course also focuses on copyrights, provides a brief look at trademarks and trade secrets, presents comparisons of what can and cannot be protected, and what rights the owner does and does not obtain. Issues relating to information technology, biogenetic materials, and business methods are highlighted.

Most of the assigned readings are case decisions and excerpts from federal statutes. Class sessions combine discussion with lecture, and students are expected to read the assigned material carefully prior to each class.

There will be one mid-term exam and one second-half-term exam. There will also be a short patent-search project, with a written report and optional class presentation. In addition, there will be very short exercises based on the readings throughout the term. Components of students' final grades will be weighted as follows:

The U.S. Patent System: the Constitution, Congress, Patent Office (PTO), and courts

Analyzing and understanding judicial opinions

Legal fundamentals of patent protection for useful inventions

Design and plant patents

Legal fundamentals of copyright protection

Similarity and access

Expression vs. ideas and information, merger

Fair use of copyrighted works (e.g., for classroom use)

Contributory copyright infringement

Critical differences between patent and copyright protection

Copyright infringement distinguished from plagiarism

New and useful:

(A) The legal requirement of novelty

(B) First to invent vs. first inventor to file

Statutory subject matter and judicial exceptions:

(A) Patentability of algorithms, software, and business methods

Statutory subject matter and judicial exceptions:

Anatomy of a patent application

Adequate disclosure

Patent searching:

(A) Purposes and techniques

Patent searching:

(B) On-line tools available to MIT students

Interpretation of claims

Doctrine of equivalents

Product testing as a possibly infringing use

Doctrine of exhaustion

(A) Patent licensing

(B) Non-competition agreements

Rights and obligations among co-inventors, co-authors, employers, and licensees

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