J.D. Law & Technology Certificate

The UC Berkeley Center for Law & Technology (BCLT) offers a specialized certificate program for J.D. students that recognizes successful completion of a course of study focused on technology law.

Submission Process

The application for the 2026 J.D. Law & Technology Certificate program opens on January 12, 2026.

Deadlines & Announcements 📢

To be noted in the BCLT and Berkeley Law graduation programs as having received the certificate, students must apply by 11:59 PM on April 1, 2026.

BCLT has updated the unit requirements for the J.D. Law & Technology Certificate Program. Students must complete a total of 18 units combined between requirements #1, #2, and #3. This change was made to accommodate courses that are not offered every academic year. This update is effective as of November 25, 2025.

BCLT understands that the paper you intend to use to fulfill the writing requirement may not be due for class until after April 1, 2026. If this is the case, please submit a draft of the paper with your application by April 1, so that BCLT can provide preliminary approval of your application.

The final deadline for applying is 11:59 PM on July 1, 2026.

Program Requirements

The J.D. Law & Technology Certificate Program requires the completion of a total of 18 units across requirements #1-3, a research paper, and participation in a law and technology-focused student organization. More details are outlined below.

1. Completion of the core course, Intellectual Property Law.

2. Additional Law & Technology Core Courses:

        • Copyright Law
        • Computer Crime Law or Cybersecurity, Computer Crime, and Investigation
        • Cybersecurity Law & Policy
        • Fundamentals of Technology Transactions*
        • Information Privacy Law
        • Patent Law
        • Trademark Law
        • Trade Secrets
*Course offerings change every year; not all listed courses may be available.
 

3. Additional qualifying courses to count towards the 18-unit requirement include all those listed under the Intellectual Property & Technology Law category in the list of course offerings at Berkeley Law. Courses cross-listed in the Intellectual Property and Technology Law category and other tech-law related courses may be counted toward the certificate requirements, but only with permission.*

The Samuelson Clinic and the Global Rights Innovation Lab Clinic can count toward a maximum of 4 credits towards the overall 18-unit requirement.

ENGIN 273 Deep Tech Commercialization Strategies will be accepted as an additional course to count toward this certificate if taken during the Fall semester.

*Commonly requested courses that qualify towards the 18-unit requirement.

    • Cybersecurity in Context
    • Regulated Digital Industries (Telecomm. Law & Policy)
    • Topics in Privacy & Security Law
    • Business of Intellectual Property
    • The Law and Governance of Artificial Intelligence
    • Venture Capital Law and Finance
    • Deep Tech Innovation & Entrepreneurship
    • Regulation and Policy of Crypto and Web3
    • Select Topics in Venture Capital
    • Sports Law
    • Deep Tech Innovation & Entrepreneurship
    • Venture Capital Deal Bootcamp
    • Advanced IT Contracts: Drafting and Negotiating
    • Startup Companies and Venture Capital

4. A writing component, fulfilled by completing a 15 to 20-page publication-quality paper on a law and technology topic, such as a contribution to the Annual Review of Law & Technology through the Law and Technology Writing Workshop, or a LAW 299 individual research-and-writing project. This paper must be solo-authored; exceptions to the number of authors for the paper will be considered in limited circumstances.

5. An activity component, fulfilled by substantial participation in at least one approved activity for two semesters, or two approved activities for one semester. This requirement is designed to encourage students to develop collaborative working skills and to complement the substantive knowledge derived from course-related work.

Students do not need to be a board member of any of these organizations to complete this activity requirement. Active participation in the following organizations/activities satisfies the activity component:

Students may request to have another law and technology-related activity approved, such as a moot court competition relating to intellectual property.

Variance Process

There is some flexibility in the application of the certificate requirements, allowing students to substitute other curricular and extracurricular activities for a shortfall in the formal requirements. Students who are close to meeting the J.D. Law & Technology Certificate requirements may submit a certificate application along with a brief (one-paragraph) request for a variance. Among the types of requests that will be favorably reviewed are:

  • “I have only taken 17 units from the IP & Tech Law course catalog, but took a course in Business Law that covered substantial material related to tech and IP.”
  • “I have some other basis for claiming functional equivalence of a core or elective course (e.g., RA work, externship, extensive clinical work, other writing projects).”

Questions

For questions regarding the J.D. Law & Technology Certificate, contact Abril Delgado (abrildelgado@berkeley.edu).