Steve Zlatos: U.S. intellectual property law

Course Outline

In this series of four lectures, you will be given an introduction to the U.S. legal system, followed by an overview of U.S. intellectual property law.  You will learn about the role and importance of the U.S. Constitutional right to jury trials and the dual federal/state system of government, and the reliance on common law in the U.S. We will then discuss the four different areas of intellectual property law: patents; copyrights; trademarks; and trade secrets. Students will be given real-life examples of how these different types of intellectual property are used to protect new ideas and product brands to avoid confusion in the marketplace.  Class discussion will be encouraged, and students will be given the opportunity to ask questions throughout the lecture.  Students familiar with EU or Romanian intellectual property laws are encouraged to attend, but any student can take this class.

Course schedule:

Bio

Steve Zlatos is Of Counsel at Woodard Emhardt LLP, which is a midsize boutique intellectual property law firm located in Indianapolis, Indiana. Steve has over 35 years of experience in obtaining and protecting the intellectual property of clients big and small, and has litigated lawsuits throughout the United States.  Prior to joining the Woodard firm, Steve worked as a Deputy Attorney General for the State of Indiana representing environmental law agencies.  Since 2003, Steve has represented the country of Slovakia as its Honorary Counsel in the Midwest states of Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee.  He has lectured internationally on IP subjects at law schools in Czechia, Slovakia, Poland, and Belarus.  Steve has an engineering degree from Purdue University and received his Juris Doctor degree from Indiana University.