External summary

This postgraduate Masters programme is offered in partnership with one of the leading law and technology centres in the UK – SCRIPT: The AHRC Research Centre for Studies in Intellectual Property and Technology, based in the School of Law, University of Edinburgh. The degree of LLM in Intellectual Property Law offers advanced study of a range of Intellectual property law and Intellectual property law-related subjects. The core courses of the programme are intended to equip students with the knowledge of substantive intellectual property law (e.g. the laws of patents, copyright, trade marks, designs, database protection, breach of confidence, passing off and related sui generis rights), the place and role of intellectual property within a domestic, regional and international context, as well awareness of Intellectual Property law not just in its legal but also social, ethical, cultural and commercial contexts (e.g. investigation of a range of issues, problems and solutions which underpin contemporary intellectual property policy). The taught core courses lay down a foundation for a specialised dissertation where the students get an opportunity to develop more detailed knowledge, understanding and research skills in a chosen Intellectual property topic.

Educational aims of programme

Insert Text The programme aims to promote advanced knowledge and understanding of intellectual property law within international, European and domestic settings. The programme spans comparative study of the laws of patents, copyright, trade marks, designs, database protection, breach of confidence, passing off and related sui generis rights, as well as investigating a range of issues which underpin contemporary intellectual property law.

Having studied the programme, students will emerge with an understanding of intellectual property law not just in its legal but also social, ethical, cultural and commercial contexts.  During study students will have access to the results of innovative cross-cutting research of the highest quality. The programme is suitable to prepare students for advanced research.

Programme outcomes: Knowledge and understanding

The subjects of the degree are intended to equip students with both an advanced knowledge of substantive intellectual property law and of the place and role of intellectual property within a domestic, regional and international context, laying a foundation for a specialised dissertation. By the end of their studies for this degree, students will have acquired a high level of knowledge in the field of intellectual property law, a sophisticated awareness of the problems in the area and of the differing approaches to their solution.

Programme outcomes: Graduate attributes - Skills and abilities in research and enquiry

Intellectual skills

• Collecting, organising and evaluating different types of resources 
• Developing working knowledge and critical understanding of key literature in the field.
• Analysing and critically evaluating material and arguments
• Analysing problems and preparing solutions along with offering in depth analysis: ability to put forward legal arguments, discussion and evidence in a balanced way and in analysing the weak and strong points of arguments and to synthesise these in the process of solving problems.
• Undertaking advanced research in writing on chosen topics: ability to appropriately reference a piece of work, present it concisely, clearly and coherently.
• Explaining and justifying research methods used, where appropriate.
• Thinking creatively and critically

Professional/subject-specific/practical skills

• Advanced ability to use legal materials
• Advanced use of on-line resources, where appropriate
• Ability to conduct advanced legal research

Programme outcomes: Graduate attributes - Skills and abilities in personal and intellectual autonomy

• Facilitation of independent study and research both through taught courses and dissertation: planning and undertaking of research in both familiar and unfamiliar areas in the chosen field of law
• Reflection on own learning: seeking and making use of feedback
• Engagement in peer to peer learning
• Facilitation of independent and critical thinking

Programme outcomes: Graduate attributes - Skills and abilities in communication

Effective communication in writing and orally: the taught courses require students to submit written work for assessments, to a deadline and within a page limit, and thereby encourages them to develop the technique of writing in a clear and concise fashion; and, communicating information (including discussing technical and complex legal materials), ideas, advice and choices in an effective manner (appropriate to the context and the type of audience e.g. to communicate to a non-legal audience in plain English legal terminology only where needed ). The courses on the programme also provide opportunities for students to extend their oral skills by requiring them to take a full part in the discussion of the seminar which may involve students in making presentations to the class.

Programme outcomes: Graduate attributes - Skills and abilities in personal effectiveness

• Organising and managing work and time
• Working independently and taking responsibility for own work
• Engaging with an international postgraduate community
• Working in groups
• Ability to work effectively to fixed deadlines

Programme outcomes: Technical/practical skills

Use of the internet as a communication and research tool: producing assessments using word processors or tools; ability to use the internet and e-mail, including specifically the ability to exchange documents electronically; ability to use electronic collaborative platforms such as wikis and discussion boards.

Programme structure and features

The programme will be available as a full-time or part-time programme.  The full time route is 12 months, commencing in September.

The students will be required to complete a total of 180 credits in order to achieve the LLM. The students are required to take 6 courses (120 credit points) over two semesters and the dissertation (60 points) is completed over the summer months, subject to attaining the required course passes during semester time.

At least 80 credits must be taken from the core courses listed below. Candidates must then take a further 40 credits which may be chosen from the list below under further courses or from any other course or any other module offered from the wider portfolio of LLM courses.

The students may take no more than 40 of the total 120 credits from the list of on-line courses but they may take no more than one 20 credit on-line module per semester and cannot take courses in one medium which are wholly or substantially the same as those they have already taken in the other.

The courses for 20 credits each may be selected from the following:

Core courses - At least 80 course work credits from the following:

On-campus courses

On-line courses

Further 40 course work credits from following or other courses in law:

On-campus courses

On-line courses

Dissertation

Including these course titles within the Programme Specification is no guarantee that they will run each year.

The learning process will be didactic, seminar-based and research-focused. The on-line modules are taught wholly on-line. The number of students studying any on-line module is likely to range from between 8 and 20. Students will be required to prepare weekly in advance by reading materials prescribed in handouts on the learning platform and by reflecting on the issues to be discussed in the discussion groups. As with the on-campus courses, very little benefit will be gained from the discussions without adequate preparation.  Discussion groups will be moderated by academic tutors, the majority of whom are the same academics who teach on the on-campus courses. Guest tutors are also likely to join the discussions. Contributions to discussions should be made in accordance with clearly defined criteria set out in the e-learning platform.

Candidates will also be required to design and write an approved 10,000-word dissertation in an area covered by the courses in the dedicated programme. The dissertation requires a more independent and less structured form of study than the taught courses. For the dissertation the student will have a supervisor from whom they can expect guidance and support, but the purpose of the dissertation is to allow them to independently design and conduct a piece of research and analysis.

Progression to the dissertation and award of the LLM degree will be decided, in line with the University’s Taught Assessment Regulations, by a Board of Examiners administered in the School of Law and composed of staff teaching on the degree.

Specifically, the normal conditions for progression and exit awards are as follows:

In order to progress to the masters dissertation candidates must:

• attain at least 80 credits with a pass at masters level or more in each of the separate elements and
• be awarded an aggregate pass at masters level for the 120 credits of study examined at the point of decision for progression and

have no course mark below 40% in any 40-credit course, and no more than one course mark below 40% in any 20-credit course

Students who do not meet the criteria for progression but who receive a pass at diploma level or more in 80 credits and an aggregate pass at diploma level for the 120 credits of study are eligible to receive the Diploma.

In order to be awarded a masters degree candidates must:

• have satisfied the requirements for progression, as laid out above, and
• attain 60 credits, by achieving a pass at masters level for the dissertation.

Any student who meets the criteria for progression but who then does not pass the dissertation is eligible to receive the Diploma.

Students can also exit with a postgraduate certificate on achieving 60 credits from taught elements.

Promoting social responsibility, sustainability and equality and diversity

Social responsibility

Sustainability and equality and diversity

Teaching and learning methods and strategies

This section should include the following

• The range of teaching and learning methods used on the programme, including opportunities for feedback

All courses on the programme are taught in seminar discussion groups.  Class sizes range from 5-25 students and seminars generally last for two hours.  Students are expected to prepare for these seminars in advance by reading the materials prescribed in class hand-outs and by reflecting upon the issues which will be critically discussed in the seminar.  Seminars may include large group discussions, small group work exercises and group and/or individual presentations.  Interaction with course staff, course organisers and fellow students throughout seminars, in which active participation is a prerequisite, ensures that students get ongoing feedback on their contributions to the class and opportunities to reflect on their learning.  The programme also includes a supervised dissertation to which students’ progress after satisfactorily completing the taught courses.  All students are allocated an individual supervisor with relevant academic experience in their chosen area of study.  Supervision is designed to assist students in identifying and refining an appropriate academic research project, to support their programme of research activity, and to empower them to take lead responsibility for their research.  Students receive ongoing feedback and must reflect on their progress through their one to one supervision meetings.

• Facilities (e.g. library; IT or any other distinctive facilities provided within the School)

Postgraduate students have access to the extensive computing facilities provided by the Law School. The School maintains a number of computer labs, all of which are available for the exclusive use of postgraduate students. Wireless network access is available in many parts of the Law School including within the Law Library and Lecture Theatres. Postgraduate students have extensive access to online legal research facilities including electronic journals, LexisNexis and Westlaw. Additional computing facilities (including a laptop loan service for flexibility of learning) are available in the University's Main Library and via the University's Computing Services.

The School is proud to boast a brand new Moot Court Room, which is installed with all the latest IT and audio facilities, giving all students who participate in mooting competitions and exercises a flavour of practice in a real court situation.

Assessment methods and strategies

This section should include the following

• Programme assessment methods, preferably by year of programme including opportunities for feedback

There will be some variation amongst your courses as to the modes of assessment as differing courses will test different competencies and aptitudes.  In full year courses (40 credits), assessment will normally be by two essays with the first having a lesser weight.  One semester courses (20 credits) are assessed either by one essay that counts for 100% of the grade or by a combination of essay and another form of assessment (such as a take-home exercise, a presentation (both solo and group), an annotated bibliography, a poster, a response to a policy consultation, a moot, or an assessment completed in class).

The School provides targeted, timely and useful feedback to students on their performance in a number of ways:

• through direct comment by staff members in seminars;
• through supervision meetings on the dissertation;
• through written comments provided to students during the course of the academic session on formative assessment, such assessment designed to assist students in improving their essay and examination technique;
• through individual written feedback provided to students on summative coursework such as essays and the dissertation;
• through informal meetings that students can arrange with course organisers, or other members of the teaching team, where additional support or advice on how to improve their learning strategies and practice is required.

The School is always looking to improve the quality and helpfulness of its feedback to students, and takes seriously the comments on feedback provided anonymously in class questionnaires and via the annual Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey.

Student feedback and evaluation is a valued input to curriculum and programme review and development within the school and students are asked to complete evaluation forms on each course they take.  Student representatives are elected at the start of every year and represent the study body throughout the period of the programme of study.

Career opportunities

The School is dedicated to ensuring all students are academically and socially prepared and are responsible and ethical citizens.  We offer training events and support for all our postgraduate students in both academic and key life skills.  The current employment market is a difficult and competitive one but we aim to ensure our students are independent thinkers with practical skills, giving them an advantage over their peers.

We will support you with events and training sessions aimed at advancing the skills needed to complete your programme or pursue further study.

All of our postgraduates are also able to draw upon the expertise and services offered by key support services within the university.  The Institute of Academic Development offers further training on research skills, as well as support for identifying suitable sources of research funding, data library usage, research publication services and guidance on data management.  The English Language Training Centre offers support and training for international students wishing to enhance their language skills and the Careers Service offers expert advice on careers options, searching for careers, CV writing and preparing for interviews.  This support can be tailored for students from the School of Law.

Other courses and training events offered by the Institute include essential communication skills, information technology skills, time management, project management, decision-making and much more.

Employment opportunities for students graduating from this programme include:

• Specialised legal practitioners in Intellectual Property Law at all levels (national, EU, international) of governance
• Public regulators
• Government advisors
• International negotiators
• Legal advisors to private companies, the cultural and creative industries and NGOs
• International civil servants
• Specialised researchers in academic and think-tank institutions
• Independent Consultants

Other items

The school and its research centres actively organise frequent events including seminar and lecture series, conferences, research training, workshops and fairs.  We strongly encourage all our postgraduate students to attend these events as well as getting involved with their organisation.

The Edinburgh Student Law Review is the first of its kind in Scotland.  Managed and written entirely by the School’s student body, it aims to provide a forum for law students to engage in a more analytical approach to the study of law.  Students from all levels and legal disciplines are encouraged to submit articles, case notes and updates which are published in the Review each year.

The School of Law and Edinburgh University are committed to providing pastoral support for postgraduate students.  The programme director and postgraduate office staff act as points of first contact and can advise students on the extensive network of services that exist throughout the University.  Additional language training and support is available for international students, the Student Disability Service offers guidance and support for students experiencing difficulties or suffering from impairments covered by the Equality Act, and the Edinburgh University Students’ Association, run by and for students themselves, offer a broad range of services to support students’ well-being at the University.  The University’s Accommodation Services can also help students finding appropriate accommodation in the city.