Law Schedule of Classes

NOTE: Course offerings change. Classes offered this semester may not be offered in future semesters.

Apart from their assigned mod courses, 1L students may only enroll in courses offered as 1L electives. A complete list of these courses can be found on the 1L Elective Listings page. 1L students must use the 1L class number listed on the course description when enrolling.


278.31 sec. 001 - Copyright Law (Spring 2022)

Instructor: Pamela Samuelson  (view instructor's teaching evaluations - degree students only | profile)
View all teaching evaluations for this course - degree students only

Units: 3
Grading Designation: Graded
Mode of Instruction: In-Person

Meeting:

TuTh 2:10 PM - 3:25 PM
Location: Law 140
From January 11, 2022
To April 22, 2022

Course Start: January 11, 2022
Course End: April 22, 2022
Class Number: 32002
This course is open to 1Ls.

Enrollment info:
Enrolled: 60
Waitlisted: 0
Enroll Limit: 66
As of: 07/19 11:58 AM


Can you copyright a garden design or a yoga sequence? Does a privately drafted building code lose copyright protection when a legislature adopts it as the law? Does embedding a photo you like on social media infringe copyright in the photo? Is appropriation art fair use? If you "buy" an e-book can you resell it if the publisher says in fine print you only have a license? These are a few of the dozens of questions this course will address.

It provides an in-depth review of U.S. copyright law, while also offering a comparative analysis with copyright laws of other jurisdictions insofar as those nations' rules differ from U.S. rules. We will study:
--the subject matters of copyright protection;
--criteria that works must meet to be eligible for copyright protection;
--ownership and transfers of copyright interests;
--the types of conduct authors have the right to control (and not control);
--fair uses and other copyright exceptions and limitations;
--infringement standards;
--remedies for infringement;
--supplementary forms of protections for copyrighted works and federal preemption of some state law claims.
--constitutional, statutory and common law dimensions of copyright; and
--the relationship between federal copyright protection and similar state law rights.

Owing largely to challenges posed by digital technologies, copyright law has become quite controversial, some of which play out in Congress and some in litigation. By taking this class, you will be better prepared to practice law in this dynamic field.

The course will offer an international perspective on each topic covered. It covers many topics not addressed in the Introduction to Intellectual Property class.

Two short ungraded assignments during the term will give you experience applying copyright law to real or hypothetical fact patterns.

Exam Notes: (F) In-class final exam
Exam Length: 3.5 hours
Course Category: Intellectual Property and Technology Law

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