What you’ll study

The Postgraduate Diploma in Commercial Intellectual Property comprises of three modules designed to take you from the foothills to the peak of commercial IP.

Course modules

Module 1: Introduction to Commercial IP

You will be introduced to the law governing all categories of IP namely:

Patent

Trade Marks

Copyright

Designs

Confidential Information

The module will encourage you to begin to think like an IP lawyer as you examine the relevant law found in statutes and judgments. You will then focus on topics that apply across all categories of IP. Examining them in detail will help you to think laterally when addressing IP issues in preference to a “siloed” approach.

In this context, you will consider:

The duration of IP Rights and how their natural life may be curtailed;
What is excluded from IP protection?
Limitations in the enforcement of IP Rights.

Module 2: Key Concepts in Commercial IP

Continuing your journey to think like an IP Lawyer, you will explore some of the more important, and in some cases, challenging elements of IP Law. You will revisit teaching from module one and use it as the starting point for more detailed exploration. This module equips you for progressing to module three where the principles studied in modules one and two are applied in the context of commercial realities.

In this module you will explore in greater depth the concepts covered in module one, to include:

Patent inventiveness

Patent sufficiency

Patent claims construction and mechanical equivalents

Subject matter that may not be patented

Copyright and design law interface in respect of non-aesthetic creations

The average consumer and the likelihood of confusion in trade mark law

Issues of dilution in trade mark law.

The informed user and overall impression in designs law

Case analysis techniques

Reflective practitioner skills

Module 3: Commercial IP Practice

This module is designed to complete the process of setting the knowledge of IP you have developed so far into the context of commerce – the context in which you aspire to provide effective professional guidance.

We aim to do this by:

Familiarising you with various rights (e.g., Domain Name “rights”)) that are peripheral to the main IP Rights but which frequently need to be deployed in conjunction with those rights to achieve a client’s commercial advantage.

Setting the law in the context of particular industries where advanced technologies and modern communication facilities pose particular challenges.

Introducing you to the national and international registries, which, in the context of relevant international agreements, may be:

consulted to determine whether pre-existing rights may block a client from using or registering its intellectual creations; and

utilised to secure an international portfolio of registered IP rights.

Supplementing your existing knowledge of dispute resolution processes with procedures and trial preparation techniques that are unique to IP cases.

Developing your ability to secure client advantage through commercial arrangements involving IP rights including the effective navigation of tax and competition rules.

At each stage you will cement the knowledge you have acquired to date, and deepening your understanding, by re-examining and articulating the legal principles considered in modules one and two.

We develop further your ability to “think like an IP lawyer”. You will continue to become familiar with the concept of reflective learning and reflective practice.

In this module, you will consider:

Re-examination and articulation of the legal principles considered in modules one and two in the context of real-life practicalities of legal practice and the pragmatic application of those principles to include:

Practical issues arising in applying for registered protection in respect of patents, trade marks and designs in light of national and international rules.

The international rulebook in relation to copyright.

Complex examination of commercial significance of IP rights and their commercial exploitation.

Application of tax to IP rights. interrelationship of tax laws and IP rights.

Interface between IP rights and principles of competition law and rules.

Law of unjustified threats

Rights peripheral to IP law:

Database Rights

Geographical Denominations

Domain Names

Company Names Tribunal

ASA and consumer protection

Moral Rights

Rights in performance

Rights in semiconductor topography

IP rights (mainly copyright) and the internet.

Criminal law in respect of IP Rights.

Court procedures and rules, evidence, alternative dispute resolution techniques and expert witnesses as they apply to intellectual property.

Rights clearance and application of IP due diligence, investigation and contractual protection involved in, the acquisition/disposal of an IP-owning business.

Ownership, assignments, licences and security interests over IP rights including co-existence arrangements.

Reverse engineering/encrypted information in the context of confidential information and other IP rights.

UK Confidential Information and EU Trade Secrets Regulation.

Drafting and negotiation of warranties, indemnities, provisions in a business acquisition/disposal and common contractual provisions in IP related contracts

Role of IP in industries

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How you’re taught

This course is online, studied at your own pace. You choose when, where, and for how long.

Assessment

The delivery of the course online enables NTU to provide you with different forms of learning activities and assessment. Assessment in the form of open book Multiple-Choice Questions (MCQs) is offered in module one and you will practise them in a formative way during the module. Module two uses the summative assessment method of Patchwork Text where you will “stitch together” the work you will complete during the module. The module also requires the creation of two explanatory leaflets and a 30-minute viva voce based on the content of your leaflets. This is an effective way of helping you to make sense of the complex concepts when dealing with Intellectual Property Rights. Modules one and two will equip you for the more complex application of the law to practice in module three. Assessment in module three focuses on short answer questions (SAQs) which are based on a seen case study used throughout the module, together with the creation of a 30-minute presentation/radio podcast and a prescriptive reflective report. The outcome after successful completion of the 3 modules is that you will begin to think like an IP Professional achieved at your pace and in your time.

Course structure

Registration for the course leading to the Postgraduate Diploma in Commercial Intellectual Property is five years. This is commensurate with registration for other professional courses such as the Professional Certificate in Trade Mark Practice and IP Litigation.

Given that your progress is conducted at your own pace, expectations for completion to facilitate your success within this timeframe is suggested as follows:

Module	Standard-paced learner	Accelerate-paced learner	Maximum for completion
1	12 weeks (3 months)	6 weeks (1.5 months)	6 months
2	24 weeks (6 months)	12 weeks (3 months)	18 months
3	48 weeks (12 months)	24 weeks (6 months)	24 months

Completion is expected within four years of registration. This allows for 12 months space where you may take a few weeks/months break in between the modules.

There are three features to supporting your progress and success in the online course:

The embedding of “nudges” and “unlocking” facilities.
The academic/personal tutor.
The diverse methods of formative and summative assessment.

Enrolment dates for module one

4 March 2023

4 April 2023

4 May 2023

4 June 2023

4 October 2023

4 November 2023

4 December 2023

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Careers and employability

Your future career

We will kick start your development into experienced, pragmatic and mature specialists. Thereafter, the addition of skill, judgment and authority in addressing the more complex aspects of IP law becomes important for you as a lawyer with ambition in the field of IP.

Postgraduate Diploma in Commercial Intellectual Property

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