Can you really get a patent on a rectangular cell phone shape? Do artists and musicians need over a century of copyright protection for their works? Can you trademark red shoe soles? These are some of the questions that U.S. Congress and the courts have addressed in recent years — and in this IP course, we will, too.

Touching on most areas of commercial and artistic activity, intellectual property (IP) law is an essential component of modern society. In this course, Part 1 of a two-part series, learners will be introduced to a broad overview of the intellectual property laws, the theory underpinning this area of law, and an individual look at patent law.

Intellectual property is one of the hottest topics in the news today and is more valuable than ever. As detailed in this article, as intellectual property becomes more valuable to companies, it becomes more difficult to obtain. The Supreme Court is also taking more patent cases than ever, including the Oil States case, where the Court must decide whether administrative review of patents violates the Constitution!