Module Information

Module Identifier
LAM0520
Module Title
International Copyright Law
Academic Year
2017/2018
Co-ordinator
Semester
Semester 1
Other Staff

Course Delivery

Delivery Type Delivery length / details
Seminar 11 x 2 Hour Seminars
 

Assessment

Assessment Type Assessment length / details Proportion
Semester Assessment WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT OF 5,000-6,000 WORDS  80%
Semester Assessment ORAL PRESENTATION  20%
Supplementary Assessment WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT OF 5,000-6,000 WORDS TO BE RESUBMITTED, IF FAILED  80%
Supplementary Assessment ORAL PRESENTATION OR WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT IN LIEU OF ORAL PRESENTATION TO BE SUBMITTED, IF FAILED  20%

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this module students should be able to:

1. Understand of copyright law and its enforcement both domestically and internationally.
2. Become familiar with UK Copyright law which will provide the framework for undertaking a comparative analysis in respect of the copyright laws of many other countries.

International Copyright conventions will be studied and detailed attention will be paid to the extent to which the laws of developing countries and their enforcement procedures will have to change to combat copyright infringement. The copyright laws in several jurisdictions will be examined, including for example, the USA, countries within Europe and within Asia. Students will be able to critically assess the copyright law that is currently in force in these countries and will be able to analyse the issues from both a practical and theoretical perspective.

Brief description

Issues relating to copyright increasingly demand for an international perspective to be taken. Piracy of goods is a major problem, with pirated goods, produced in breach of intellectual property rights, especially copyright, accounting for around 5% of world trade. The international community is attempting to counter this by harmonising laws and law enforcement procedures through international agreement and political pressure. This module considers copyright protection for authors, publishers, software houses and the sound recording industry; the public interest in the dissemination of information; and the copyright issues in global information systems such as the Internet.

Content

1. International Conventions, Treaties and Agreements.
2. UK Copyright Law - key principles of the current legislative framework.
3. Copyright in Europe - approaches to copyright regulation and enforcement in Europe.
4. Copyright in Asia - an analysis of selected jurisdictions, with a particular focus on music piracy and technological advances.
5. Copyright in the U.S.A - comparing and contrasting the Anglo-American approach with copyright laws in Europe and the Far East.

Transferable skills

Throughout the module, students will practise and develop their skills of research, analysis, time-management, oral and written presentation. In seminars they will develop their ability to listen, understand and explain subject related topics as well as present a point of view orally and discuss their thoughts with the rest of the class; their assignments will enable them to develop their skills of independent research, analysis, presentation and writing (including data collection and retrieval, IT and time management). All learning throughout the module will be relevant to a career in any legal profession.


Notes

This module is at CQFW Level 7