LLM in Intellectual Property Law University of Johannesburg

If you want to be a strategic thinker on IP, complete the LLM at UJ!

“The future of the nation depends in no small part on the efficiency of industry, and the efficiency of the industry depends in no small part on the protection of intellectual property.” Judge Richard Posner in Rockwell Graphic Systems, Inc. v. DEV Industries, 925 F.2d 174 (7th Cir. 1991)

The field of intellectual property (IP) reaches wide, and is probably the most dynamic field of law, as it constantly changes. What does it relate to? The nature of IP is best understood through a comparison with other, tangible, forms of property. One example is immovable property, such as a piece of land.

Other examples are things, such as a vehicle, a watch, or a soccer ball. In these instances, one has rights to the object itself. In other words, your rights would be infringed if the object is destroyed. The position with IP is different. An example might be a patent for a pair of night vision binoculars. The intellectual property rights of the patentee would not be infringed if the binoculars are destroyed. The reason for this is that it is the invention that is protected and not the binoculars. IP is, accordingly, that body of law that regulates the creation and utilization of immaterial property, and the enforcement of resultant rights. The objects of the various IP rights typically include patents, copyright, registered designs, and trademarks.

Reasons for studying at UJ

• UJ offers not only a special program called the First Year Experience to help orientate students throughout the first year but we also offer a Senior Student Experience that gears students toward the workplace!
• Grab the opportunity to participate in a variety of sports and train alongside Olympians and Paralympians on state-of-the-art pitches, tracks, and fields, or just keep fit by joining one of the gyms on each of our 4 campuses.
• Be part of a young, vibrant, and agile university that reflects and adapts easily to our country’s aspirations, while maintaining global relevance through numerous international partnerships.
• 178 Internationally respected and accepted qualifications.
• Join a university that cares enough to have raised over R300 million since the start of 2016 in order to support the Missing Middle Campaign. UJ also ensures that more than 6 000 needy students have two healthy meals per day.
• Study in the vibrant City of Gold – the economic hub of South Africa. Join a vibrant, cosmopolitan, progressive group of students and academics on their way to re-imagining the future!
• UJ offers an amazing on-campus experience whether you live in one of UJ’s residences, belong to a day house, or whether you just want to socialize at the Student Centres on all campuses.
• We ensure the health, safety, and security of all our students through our own on-campus health services and UJ Protection Services.
• Did you know that during the first five years of UJ’s existence it doubled its targeted research output and to this day, continues to break records!

What will I be taught? In the three coursework modules, you will be learning more of:

1. Trademark law (first semester)

Trademark law involves a study of the fundamental principles as found in practice. In other words the nature of a mark, the concept of use, bars to registration, the issue of registrability, and infringement provisions. Where relevant, freedom of speech as encountered in other jurisdictions will be studied.

2. Copyright law (second semester)

This module entails a study of the basic principles of copyright law, in particular the issue of originality, the rights of the copyright owner, exemptions from infringement, and infringement itself. Attention will also be given to internet law as it intersects with copyright or other areas of the law. This may include the liability of service providers, moral rights, television format protection, prominent cases on the subject, and proposed legislation.

3. Patent and design law (first semester)

This module is an advanced study of patent law, dealing with basic principles of patent registration and the exclusions from patentability, such as software. The issue of infringement and relevant remedies will be discussed in detail. A similar approach is followed in relation to design law.

4. Dissertation

A dissertation of a limited nature must be completed on a topic taken from one of the three modules.

Shanghai Ranking

• World Rankings: 601-700 in the world / 5th in South Africa and 6th in Africa
• Global Ranking of Academic Subjects (GRAS):

Hospitality & Tourism Management: 18th in the world, 1st in South Africa and Africa
Sociology: Top 150 in the world, 1st and only one ranked in South Africa and Africa
Public Administration: Top 150 in the world, 1st and only one ranked in South Africa and Africa
Education: Top 300 in the world, 1st in South Africa and Africa
Earth Sciences: Top 300 in the world, 2nd in South Africa and Africa
Geography: Top 300 in the world, 2nd in South Africa and Africa
Chemical Engineering: Top 400 in the world, joint 1st in South Africa and Africa
Political Sciences: Top 400 in the world, 3rd in South Africa and Africa
Physics: Top 400 in the world, 3rd in South Africa and Africa
Management: Top 500 in the world, 1st in South Africa and Africa
Ecology: Top 500 in the world

Quacquarelli Symonds (QS)

• World Rankings: 434 in the world, in the Top 1.4% / 3rd in South Africa and Africa
• Subject Rankings:

English Language & Literature: Top 250 in the world, joint 3rd in South Africa and Africa
Chemical Engineering: Top 350 in the world, joint 3rd in South Africa, and joint 4th in Africa
Education & Training: Top 350 in the world, 5th in South Africa and Africa
Economics & Econometrics: Top 400 in the world, joint 4th in South Africa, and joint 5th in
Africa Agriculture & Forestry: Top 400 in the world, 6th in South Africa
Physics & Astronomy: Top 450 in the world, joint 2nd in South Africa, and joint 3rd in Africa
Environmental Sciences: Top 450 in the world, 6th in South Africa and Africa
Chemistry: Top 500 in the world, joint 3rd in South Africa, and joint 6th in Africa
Mechanical, Aeronautical & Manufacturing Engineering: Top 500 in the world, 5th in South Africa
Medicine: Top 650 in the world

• QS Graduate Employability Rankings:

Top 500 in the world, joint 4th in South Africa

Times Higher Education (THE)

• World Rankings: 601-800 in the world / Joint 7th in South Africa
• Subject Rankings:

Law: Top 201+ in the world, joint 4th in South Africa and Africa
Education: Top 300 in the world, joint 3rd in South Africa and Africa
Psychology: Top 400 in the world, joint 2nd in South Africa and Africa
Arts & Humanities: Top 400 in the world, joint 3rd in South Africa and Africa
Social Sciences: Top 400 in the world, 4th in South Africa and Africa
Life Sciences: Top 500 in the world, joint 4th in South Africa, and joint 5th in Africa
Business & Economics: Top 600 in the world, joint 4th in South Africa, and joint 6th in Africa
Engineering & Technology: Top 600 in the world, joint 4th in South Africa
Clinical & Health: Top 600 in the world
Computer Science: Top 800 in the world, joint 4th in South Africa
Physical Sciences: Top 800 in the world

• THE Young University Rankings: 173 among young universities, 4th in South Africa
• THE Emerging Economies University Rankings: 116 among universities in emerging economies, 7th in South Africa

US News & World Report’s Best Global Universities Rankings (BGUR)

• World Rankings: 378 in the world / 5th in South Africa and Africa
• Subject Rankings:

Geosciences: 222 in the world, 2nd in South Africa and Africa
Chemistry: 280 in the world, 1st in South Africa and Africa
Social Sciences & Public Health: 287 in the world, 5th in South Africa and Africa
Physics: 289 in the world, 3rd in South Africa and Africa
Engineering: 392 in the world, 2nd in South Africa, and 4th in Africa
Plant & Animal Science: 424 in the world
Environment/Ecology: 463 in the world

An IP LLM could lead to a career as an advocate, attorney, legal adviser in government or in the private sector, a position in a regulatory environment, or a position in an international agency.