LAW7119

Patents, trade secrets and allied rights ( 6 points, SCA Band 3, 0.125 EFTSL)

Leader: Associate Professor Ann Monotti

Offered:
City Term 2 2005 (On-campus)

Synopsis: The Australian patent system and the action of breach of confidence. History and rationale of the patent system. The concept of invention; the requirements for patentability; patent application procedure; the drafting of claims; the enforcement, maintenance and exploitation of patents, and the international patent system. The nature and scope of protection accorded to confidential information and the relationship between patent and trade secrets protection. Allied forms of protection including plant breeders' rights and utility models.

Objectives: Students who successfully complete this subject should (1) have an enhanced appreciation of the policies and objectives underlying the laws of patents and confidential information; (2) be in a position to comment critically on those policies and objectives and to relate them to current proposals for law reform; (3) have developed a detailed knowledge of the subject matter that is eligible for protection under these laws, the requirements for obtaining such protection and its scope, once obtained; (4) be in a position to provide detailed and comprehensive advice to inventors, enterprises and other persons engaged in the process of innovation on their rights and liabilities under these laws; and (5) have a sound understanding of the operation and application of the rules governing the international protection of patents for inventions and allied rights.

Assessment: Research assignment (3750 words): 50% + Take home exam (3750 words): 50% OR Supervised exam (2.5 hours plus 30 minutes reading and noting time): 50%

Contact Hours: Sem long unit - 2 hours per week - Sem 2, 2004