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LWM49

Transfer of technology law

Module information>

Academic Direction
UCL, Queen Mary University of London
Modes of Study
Online

The exploitation of intellectual property rights is rarely confined to a single jurisdiction, but rather it crosses national borders. This interjurisdictional exploitation occurs most commonly with the innovation rights, that is: patents and trade secrets.

However, issues arise in relation to other intellectual property rights as well. Thus, questions about the ownership of the key rights, the licensing of these rights and competition law must be answered. In Transfer of technology law you will study how and why the rules governing technology transfer work. The course examines the issues largely from the perspective of United Kingdom and European Union law.

Module A: Intellectual property and technology transfer

LWM49A

  • Background to technology transfer
  • Patents
  • Breach of confidence
  • Copyright
  • Designs

Module B: Licensing of intellectual property

LWM49B

  • The interests in intellectual property
  • Ownership
  • General contractual principles
  • Assignment
  • Licences
  • Licence terms
  • Royalties

Module C: Competition law and technology transfer

LWM49C

  • Introduction to competition law
  • Market definition and exempt agreement
  • Technology Transfer Block Exemption
  • Research and development and specialisation block exemptions
  • Licence agreements outside a block exemption
  • Abuse of dominant position
  • Patent pooling

Module D: Border issues in technology transfer

LWM49D

  • Sequence: module A must be attempted before module D
  • Exhaustion
  • Border controls
  • Export control
  • Taxation
  • Compulsory licences

Assessment

Each module will be assessed by a 45-minute unseen written examination.

Sequence

It is strongly recommended you attempt Module A first.

How to apply

You can either apply for these modules individually or as part of the Postgraduate Laws programme.

These modules also contribute towards the following specialist pathways for Laws:

  • Commercial and Corporate Law
  • Common Law
  • Economic Regulation
  • Intellectual Property Law
  • International Business Law
  • International Intellectual Property Law
  • Law and Development

Apply via Postgraduate Laws.