The Department of Commercial Law has a well established Masters program in Intellectual Property Law. This highly sought after program attracts students from all over the world and has generated a network of IP professionals in all spheres of industry in South Africa, the rest of Africa and beyond. The Intellectual Property courses that can be taken within the program are:
The program is offered in two configurations, namely as an LLM by coursework & dissertation and as LLM by coursework and research tasks (Professional Masters) (for more see this poster). The difference between the two is the nature of the research component. The LLM by course work and dissertation requires the the completion of a dissertation ( of a maximum 25 000 words) which constitutes 50% of the credits for the degree as shown below.
Master's degree (LLM/MPhil) specialising in Intellectual Property Law
The curriculum comprises four elective courses and a compulsory minor dissertation of not more than 25 000 words on a related topic approved by the programme convener. The curriculum consists of 240 credits.
Elective courses [to the value of 120 credits]
Four courses, including at least three of the following courses (30 credits each):
| CML5657F Electronic Intellectual Property Law | 30 credits |
| CML5678F Principles of Intellectual Property Law | 30 credits |
| CML5680S Advanced Intellectual Property Law | 30 credits |
| CML5691S IP Law, Development and Innovation | 30 credits |
Research component
CML5681W Intellectual Property Law Minor Dissertation 120 credits
Master of Laws (LLM) in Intellectual Property Law (Professional Master's degree)
The curriculum comprises one compulsory core course, three elective courses, and four independent research tasks demonstrating professional expertise. The curriculum consists of 180 credits.
Compulsory (core) course
CML5678F Principles of Intellectual Property Law 30 credits
Elective courses (three of the following to the value of 90 credits)
| CML5657F Electronic Intellectual Property Law | 30 credits |
| CML5691S Intellectual Property Law, Development and Innovation | 30 credits |
| CML5680S Advanced Intellectual Property Law | 30 credits |
| CML----F IP One CML course | 30 credits |
Compulsory (core) research task
CML5678X Principles of Intellectual Property Law Research Task 15 credits
Elective research tasks (three of the following to the value of 45 credits)
| CML5657X Electronic Intellectual Property Law Research Task | 15 credits |
| CML5691X Intellectual Property Law, Development and Innovation Research Task | 15 credits |
| CML5680X Advanced Intellectual Property Law Research Task | 15 credits |
| CML----X One CML Research Task | 15 credits |