Intellectual Property Law Research

by Jim Heller
February 2009

Jump to:

• Books
• Journal Articles
• Looseleaf Services & Newsletters
• W&M Online Databases
• Web Sites
• Associations

 

Some resources on this page are subscription databases that require a W&M ID and password for off-campus access. See Off-Campus Access to Library Resources for more information. Lexis and Westlaw require individual IDs and passwords for both off-campus and on-campus access.

Books

Library Catalog
To search for books, journals, and audiovisual materials held by William & Mary libraries, use the online catalog.

Search Tips:
Subject Queries--

• Competition, Unfair
• Copyright
• Intellectual Property
• Patent Laws and Legislation
• Trade Secrets
• Trademarks

Library of Congress Call Numbers for Intellectual Property (including copyright, patents, trademarks, trade secrets, and unfair competition):
KF 2973-3197. Browse the shelves under these call numbers to locate relevant treatises.

To search for materials from other libraries, use the Worldcat database on FirstSearch.

Other Libraries - Links to other libraries and library catalogs available through the web

Selected Treatises

Altman, Louis. Callmann on Unfair Competition, Trademarks, and Monopolies.
KF1609 .C332
Westlaw: CALLMANN

Chisum, Davold S. Chisum on Patents.
Ref. KF 3110.C4
Lexis: CHISUM

Lalonde, Anne Gilson. Gilson on Trademarks.
Ref. KF 3180.G55
Lexis: GILSON

Milgrim, Roger M. Trade Secrets.
Ref. KF 3157.A6M5

Moy, Carl. Moy's Walker on Patents.
Ref. KF240 .S64 iKF3114 .L5 2003
Westlaw: MOY-PAT

Nimmer, Melville. Nimmer on Copyright.
KF2994 .N5
Lexis: COPYRT;NIMMER

Patry, William. Patry on Copyright.
KF2991.5 .P382
Westlaw: PATRYCOPY

Practising Law Institute. Patent, Copyrights Trademarks and Literary Property Course Handbook Series.
Westlaw: PLI-PAT

Journal Articles

Index to Current Journal Articles (1980-)
Legal Trac

Subject Queries--

• Copyrights
• Fair Use (Copyright Law)
• Intellectual Property
• Patents
• Trade Secrets
• Trademarks
• Unfair Competition

Indexes articles from nearly 900 legal journals, bar association publications, law reviews, and legal newspapers. Includes book reviews.

Options for accessing this index include:

• Online: 1980-Present. Updated daily.
• Westlaw: LRI (1980-present; contains links to full-text articles where available)
• Lexis: LEXREF;LGLIND (1977-present; updated weekly)

Index to Older Journal Articles (prior to 1980)
The Index to Legal Periodicals (ILP), located in Reference, indexes articles from legal journals, bar association publications, law reviews, book reviews, and legal newspapers.
Ref. ZZ66 .I534

For More Information
For more information about finding law review articles, including older ones, see Locating Legal and Non-Legal Journal Articles.

Full Text Articles
Lexis

Intellectual Property Law Reviews: COPYRT;IPLR
All Law Reviews: LAWREV;ALLREV

Westlaw

Intellectual Property Law Reviews: IP-TP
All Law Reviews, Texts & Bar Journals: TP-ALL

Specialized journals on Intellectual Property include:
AIPLA Quarterly Journal

Lexis: COPYRT;AIPLA (from 1978)
Westlaw: AIPLAQJ (from 1986)

Berkeley Technology Law Journal

Lexis: LAWREV;BRKTLJ (from 1998)
Westlaw: BERKTLJ (from 1986)

Columbia Journal of Law and the Arts

Lexis: LAWREV;COLART (from 1998)
Westlaw: CLMJLA (from 1992)

Fordham Intellectual Property, Media, and Entertainment Law Journal

Lexis: LAWREV;IPMELJ (from 1995)
Westlaw: FDMIPMELJ (from 1990)

Journal of the Copyright Society of the U.S.A.

Westlaw: JCPS (from 1983)

Journal of Intellectual Property Law

Lexis: LAWREV;JIPL (from 1994)
Westlaw: JIPL (from 1993)

Journal of the Patent and Trademark Office Society

Lexis: PATENT;JPTOS (from 1999)
Westlaw: JPTOS (from 1994)

Trademark Reporter

Lexis: TRDMRK;TMR (from 1942)
Westlaw: TMARKR (from 1990)

Texas Intellectual Property Law Journal (online only)

Lexis: LAWREV;TXIPLJ (from 1992)
Westlaw: TXIPLJ (from 1992)

Newsletters

BNA:

• Intellectual Property Library

CCH Internet Research Network:

• Intellectual Property, Computer and Internet Law

Lexis:

• IPLTR file in COPYRT, PATENT, or TRDMRK libraries.
• IPLR file in COPYRT, PATENT, or TRDMRK libraries. 
• Mealey's Intellectual Property Combined Reports (IP, Patents, and Trademarks Litigation Reports)

Westlaw:

• BNA Intellectual Property News & Reference Library: BNA-IPNEWS
• Intellectual Property News: IPNEWS
  IP news from newspapers, magazines, journals, newsletters, transcripts, and wire services.
• Westlaw Topical Highlights: The following documents highlight recent developments from the courts.
  • Copyrights
  • Patents
  • Trademarks

Additional Resources
LawTrio: A searchable database that contains listings of over 7500 legal looseleafs and newsletters in print.

W&M Databases

Lexis-Nexis  

The libraries include case law, proposed and enacted legislation, and regulations. Also include selected secondary sources, including treatises (e.g., Nimmer on Copyright; Gilson on Trademark Protection and Practice; Chisum on Patents), journal articles (e.g., the American Intellectual Property Law Association Quarterly Journal), and newsletters (e.g, BNA’s Patent, Trademark and Copyright Journal). They also include international materials, such as treaties and other agreements dealing with intellectual property and unfair competition.

• Copyright Law Library (COPYRT): Includes materials from the Copyright Office.
  

   

• Patent Library (PATENT): Includes the LEXPAT Library (materials from the Patent and Trademark Office); the full text of U.S. patents from the mid-1970's; Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks decisions; Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences
•  Trademark and Unfair Competition Library (TRDMRK): Also includes state trademark and trade name registrations, and federal trademarks.
   
• Practice Materials by Topic
  • Copyright Law
  • Patent Law
  • Trademark Law

Westlaw  

• The Federal Intellectual Property database (FIP) includes current and proposed federal legislation regulations, and court decisions; selected journal articles (e.g., Columbia Journal of Law & the Arts); and newsletters (e.g., BNA and Mealey); and special reporters such as U.S. Patents Quarterly (USPQ).

  • Legislative: FIP-USCA
  • Executive: FIP-CFR, FIP-FR, FIP-PTO
  • Judicial: FIP-CS
• Topical Materials: Intellectual Property

Web Sites

Copyright and Fair Use (Stanford University)

This site is sponsored by the Stanford University Libraries, the Council of Library Resources, and FindLaw Internet Legal Resources. Abundant information, including current and proposed legislation and regulations, court decisions, treaties and conventions, and links to other intellectual property sites.

Legal Information Institute (Cornell University)

Lots of detailed information on intellectual property issues, including an overview of patent, trademark, copyright and unfair competition law, pertinent U.S. Code and CFR provisions, the full text of important copyright cases, and links to other websites.

• Patent
• Trademark
• Copyright

U.S. Copyright Office
Keep current with copyright. Latest developments from the courts, Congress, and the Copyright Office. National and international copyright issues. Includes Copyright Office publications designed for the experienced practitioner and the novice, including the Copyright Basics series and forms. Lots of good links.

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)
The Patent and Trademark Office is a bureau within the Department of Commerce. It’s primary service is processing patent and trademarks, and disseminating patent and trademark information.

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
WIPO administers the Berne Convention, the most important international copyright treaty. Find and introduction to and information on international copyright issues here.

Associations

American Intellectual Property Association (AIPLA)

AIPLA is a professional association of more than 10,00 attorneys specializing in the practice of intellectual property law. AIPLA was formed to assist in improving the laws relating to intellectual property, including the study of, and comments on, amendments to the relevant laws protecting such property rights.

Association of American Publishers

The AAP is the principle trade association of the US book publishing industry. Their "core" programs include US and international copyright, technology, and digital issues related to publishing and intellectual freedom.

Association of Research Libraries (ARL)

ARL is an organization of more than 120 libraries from North American research institutions. Along with the American Association of Law Libraries, ARL is a leader in representing users rights.

Also check out the AALL (American Association of Law Libraries) site.

The Copyright Society of the USA

The Society is a center of the American copyright community for the bar, for industry, and for law schools. Its primary function is to gather, disseminate, and exchange information on the protection and use of rights in intellectual property.

Copyright Clearance Center (CCC)

CCC is a reproduction rights organization that established, on behalf of copyright owners, a licensing system to collect royalties for the copying and distribution of copyrighted materials. Like the AAP, the CCC advocates principally on behalf of copyright owners.

Creative Commons

Creative Commons is a non-profit corporation committed to sharing scientific, creative, and other intellectual works with the general public.

Electronic Frontier Foundation

Founded in 1990, the EFF defends free speech, privacy, innovation, and consumer rights in the digital environment.

Other associations may be found in the Encyclopedia of Associations.