IP Osgoode helps provide opportunities for Osgoode Hall law students to get practical training and work experience in IP law.  We are currently expanding upon and identifying new opportunities for students.

If you are an Osgoode student interested in clinical opportunities, or if you represent an organization that may have an interest in having an Osgoode student work on IP projects for you, then please contact us.   

There are a number of organizations that we are currently working with to identify new initiatives.  Some of them are listed below.

Osgoode Public Interest Requirement (OPIR)
All Osgoode JD students must fulfill 40 hours of public interest, law-related work and receive acknowledgement on their final transcripts as part of the Osgoode Public Interest Requirement. There are a number of IP related opportunities that may qualify, and IP Osgoode and the OPIR program are actively seeking more. 

Read about Annie Messerkhanian’s experience with the Trade-marks Opposition Board at the Canadian Intellectual Property Office.   

International Legal Partnership (ILP)
The International Legal Partnership is a non-profit student international legal assistance initiative based at Osgoode Hall Law School.  ILP’s mission is to provide global policy, legal regulatory and research assistance in developing countries (DCs).

Opportunities:

• People’s Patent Group (India).  Students interested in the intersection of IP and human rights may be interested in spending a summer in India as a Research Fellow.  The work touches on a number of issue areas within Intellectual Property (including patents, generic pharmaceuticals and genetically modified organisms).  Read more about the nature of the work and responsibilities by reading Justin Lim’s report on his experience, as well as blogs on IPilogue from India by Nigel D’Souza and Jasdeep Bal (Research Fellows for the summer of 2009).

IP Osgoode Internships
A number of unique internship opportunities have been made available for Osgoode students interested in intellectual property and technology.  Internship opportunities have included the following: 

• Yahoo! Canada hired two Osgoode students (Tiffany Wong and Robert Agar) to work as interns on a variety of IP and technology issues, as part of Yahoo!’s legal team in Toronto.  Read Tiffany Wong’s blog post describing her research experience during her summer legal internship at Yahoo! Canada.
• The McMaster Stem Cell and Cancer Research Institute hired one Osgoode student (Blake Moran) to work on business and intellectual property law projects.  Read about Blake’s experience.
• Two Osgoode students (Christopher Harris and Tony Pak) have been working with Inometrix Inc. on intellectual property projects.

Office of Research Services, York University
There may be special projects during the course of the school year for students to get involved in patent related work (such as patent searching, reviewing prior art, and working on patent manuscripts).

Harold G. Fox - Intellectual Property Moot

Congratulations to Osgoode’s 2009-2010 Harold G. Fox Moot team for their success at the competition.  The five students representing Osgoode were: Alexander Gloor, Joanna Vatavu, Melanie Larock, Nathan Fan and Stuart Freen

Joanna and Melanie finished in second place at the Moot.  Nathan and Alexander were the winners of the Gordon F. Henderson Award for the Best Factum Writers.

Read the moot team’s reflections from the 2010 competition.

The 2010-2011 Fox Moot team has been selected.  Representing Osgoode will be: Anna Koppelman, Devin Doyle, Jonathan Park, Kimberly Lawton, Leanna Yue

Copenhagen Competition

Osgoode has been invited to participate in a biannual international treaty negotiation competition hosted by The Faculty of Law at the University of Copenhagen.  This year, the subject of the Copenhagen Competition is international IP law: “Access to Medicines”.  The following students have been selected to represent Osgoode: Stephanie Anderson, Reshika Dhir, Alexander Gloor and Asad Moten.  The four Osgoode students are coached by Professor Ikechi Mgbeoji and practitioners from the law firm of Gilbert’s LLP. 

Intellectual Property and Technology Intensive

Starting in September 2011, a one-semester Intellectual Property Law and Technology Intensive Program will be offered at Osgoode Hall Law School.