Hi everyone,
I am abhishek from India i wanted to do my L.L.M. in I.P.R. i have heard Franklin Pierce law center is best. But it is not listed anywhere in Ranking. So, please tell me how good is it and which are best university to do l.l.m. in I.P.R. from U.S.A.?

hey... I'm a JD student at FPLC right now. Pierce has a great reputation in IP. It has been ranked in the top 5 IP schools in the US by US News & World reports for the past couple of years. The program isn't as strong outside of IP, which may be why you can't find it listed. But for an LLM in IP, it's a good choice. From what I understand, the LLM program has a solid reputation internationally, and in Asia especially. Pierce also has a great support system for those students coming from outside the US. If you have any questions about the program, just call or email Graduate Admissions. They're all very nice. And maybe I'm a bit biased, but I think the students are great!! :o) Good luck with your search

Hey guys,
I have been admitted for an LLM in IP at FPLC for the 2011/2012 academic year. I am very happy to be part of this program. What do you think about this opportunity? Do you think is it the right decision?

Helo Guys,

I am Darshini an M. Pharm from India, working in the field of IPR from around four years. I am also a registered patent agent before Indian Patent office.

I am interested in studying law and came across the joint JD/ LLM program or FPLC. Since I have no prior legal background please suggest me an appropriate school/course for IP law studies.

Do you want to become a lawyer? An LLM is really aimed people with existing law degrees.

If you want to be a US lawyer I'd say an LLM is not the best path, but rather you should get a JD from the highest ranked school (US News ranking) that you can get into. This is an expensive path and depends on getting a good LSAT score. Also understand that employment statistics from lower-ranked programs like Franklin Pierce/UNH are not that great, and while Franklin Pierce places relatively well in IP it is still far from a guaranteed legal job - particularly for someone who requires visa sponsorship. You are much better off going to a highly-ranked law school overall even if it is not listed in the IP-specific rankings. There is no need for a joint JD/LLM.

If you want to become an Indian lawyer get an LLB in India first and then you can think about LLMs.

There are IP certificate programs aimed at professionals without law degrees. I am not sure how much value they add, but it might look good.
http://www.scps.nyu.edu/areas-of-study/accounting-taxation-legal/professional-certificates/intellectual-property-law.html

If you want to work in IP in the US no further degree is necessarily required - you might apply to IP departments of large (pharma?) companies and get a job doing patent prosecution, licensing, etc. Most people doing these jobs have either a full J.D. or no formal legal training. However, they may want a stronger technical background than yours (e.g. Ph.D. Biochemistry).

Another route: get technical training in the US (say, Ph.D. biochem, MSEE, or MSCS), and that would open some doors in patent prosecution. As a foreign citizen you cannot take the US agent exam unless you have a work-eligible visa already, but once hired by a company you could become a US patent agent.

Dear ricechex

Thanks for the reply.

My goal is to work for the IP division of a pharma comapany assisting in the patent filings prosecution and enforcement and with respect to the field of Pharmaceuticals based on my experience I feel doing a PhD is just an addition of entry level qualification it does not pragmatically help much on the IP protection front. Therefore, I thought studying law is somthing which will make me more qualified practically. Therefore, I thought a joint JD/LLM program can be relevant.

I have taken up some of thoese professional courses available from Tire 1 law schools of India but again they are good for those entering in the field and not much for thoes who has experience.

Please suggest if you have any idea on pursuing pHd in the field of IPR.

Hi I am an advocate from Delhi. I have been granted admission in Franklin Pierce for Fall 2012 if anyone else i have been granted admission for the same semster please get in touch as it would be helpful to exchange information.

And we would like our alumini to help us to get to know the unversity before we are on the campus