This course will provide an overview of the laws, regulations and case law of trademarks, copyrights and patents. More specifically this course will address how business and technologists can use these forms of intellectual property in their daily work. Students will study the relevant intellectual property laws and regulations, the appellate court cases that have refined the common law relating to intellectual property, and the impact the law has made on the way businesses that use or produce intellectual property function.
Martin S. High, Ph.D., P.E.
Associate Professor
School of Chemical Engineering
423 Engineering North
(405) 744-5280 (Office)
EMAIL: mhigh@okstate.edu
Class Discussion:
All classes will meet at 11:30 during which time we will hold class discussions and mid-term examination(s). The OSU-Stillwater location is in 127 Cordell and the OSU-Tulsa location is 209 North Classroom Building.
Office Hours:
Email discussions are typically very useful and can resolve most issues. If you which to have a discussion in person, please make an appointment in advance. Again, email is the best way to make an appointment. I will generally will not be available on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Dreyfuss & Kwall's Intellectual
Property: Copyright, Patents and Trademarks (University Casebook Series®),
1-56662-331-6, West Publishing.
Dreyfuss & Kwall's 2002 Supplement to Intellectual Property: Copyright, Patents
and Trademarks (University Casebook Series®), 1-58778-348-7, West Publishing.
Miller and Davis' Intellectual Property—Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights in a Nutshell, 3d, 0-314-23519-1, West Publishing
Attendance at all classes is essential for continuity and understanding of the materials. Excessive absences impact your understanding of the material and significantly degrade the benefit of your participation for the rest of the class. If you have more than four (4) absences, I reserve the right to reduce your final grade by one letter. If you have more than seven (7) absences, I reserve the right to assign a failing grade for the course.
Class begins promptly at 11:30 a.m, and I take attendance just before class begins. Tardy students delay class for everyone by creating undue disturbances. Please be ready to begin the material for the day at 11:30 am. A late arrival is permissible in an emergency only. Arriving late is a privilege. Please do not abuse the privilege. (Arriving late more than twice is an abuse of the privilege.) If this privilege is abused, late arrivals will count as absences.
Preparation is absolutely necessary for each class. The higher your level of preparation, the more we can do as a class and the better your experience in this course will be. You set the tenor for the course. This means you must read and carefully consider all cases assigned. Understand the case to the best of your ability prior to coming to class. Also think about how this case relates to the other cases that we have studied. You are fitting the pieces of the puzzle together. Do not deal with each case only by itself. Be prepared on the note materials before and after each case. This material may provide you with a clue as to why we are studying that case.
Everyone loves to participate in my classes and everyone is expected to participate in class discussion (and you may even grow to enjoy participating). The only way to learn this course is through involvement. This course is not for spectators. The materials is learned by trial and error
To earn a grade in this class, a student with graduate standing must write a paper of at least 20 pages in length (double spaced, exclusive of endnotes or bibliography). The paper must be an analysis of a current popular press report of an intellectual property dispute between private or public entities. The student will be responsible for analyzing the facts of the situation and applying the principles discussed in class. The student must analyze the facts in light of the rules of law and provide an opinion to the eventual outcome of the dispute. The student must seek approval of the topic from the instructor before beginning any substantial work on the project. This paper must be submitted by 5:00 p.m.on Friday, April 23, 2004. You may submit a hard copy to me in 423 EN or by email. I recommend requesting a return receipt for any email submission.
The grades for the paper will count for an additional 25 points added to the total course grade for undergraduate students. In other words, graduate students will be graded on a scale with 25 more points than undergraduates.
One mid-term exam will be scheduled at a later date during the 7 – 8th weeks of the semester.
Except for a documented illness, absolutely no make-up exams will be given.
A two-hour final exam will be administered on the date posted in the appropriate schedule of classes for the semester in question .
As should be the case, students are commonly interested in their performance in the class and routinely ask where the grade cut-offs will be drawn for the course. Based on experience in the class, students may rely on the following cut-off points: A-B: 90; B-C: 80; C-D: 70. Students with less than a 55 % class average should not expect to receive a passing grade for the course. These cut-off points will not be raised. However, the instructors reserve the right to revise these cut-off points downward slightly depending on the overall class performance, but students should not rely on any significant departure from these guidelines.
Any act of dishonesty will result in a semester grade of “F” and dismissal from the class. This includes looking at another’s work during a test, or handing in essays or other outside work copied from files or other sources. All cases of academic dishonesty will be handled in accordance with university policies and regulations.
The total course grade will be calculated as:
|
Assignment |
Points |
|
Mid-term exam |
100 |
|
Final Exam |
150 |
|
Topic Paper (graduate students only) |
25 (graduate students only) |
|
TOTAL |
250 (or 275 for graduate students) |
Blackboard Web Page: Various materials for this class will be placed on the OSU Blackboard system for your review and use. Some lecture notes for this course have been posted on the Web at the location
http://blackboard.okstate.edu
Students are encouraged to become familiar with the use of Blackboard as it will be a central point for materials and discussions in the class.
Drop-and-Add Policy: The University withdrawal policy will be followed. Accordingly, substantive lectures begin on the very first day of classes; students adding the course late must make up the missed material through independent study. A student may not drop a course in which a formal charge of academic dishonesty is pending.
Important Dates: Please refer to the attached schedule for important dates concerning drop, withdrawal, and other pertinent dates and information.