Intellectual Property Research Guide: Introduction

This guide provides an overview of the many sources of intellectual property resources available to patrons at the Louis L. Biro Law Library at the John Marshall Law School.

Intellectual property (IP) includes

• copyrights,
  
• patents,
  
• trademarks,
  
• unfair competition, and trade secrets. 
  

In some cases, either one's JMLS username and password or LexisNexis or Westlaw username and password are needed for database access.

Hein Online

HeinOnline has a specific Intellectual Property Library, allowing for searching across all of Hein's IP information including

• More than 100 legislative histories, including a complete history of copyright laws from 1909 to date
• More than 400 books
• Code of Federal Regulations Title 37
• U.S. Code Titles 17 & 35
• Manual of Patent Examining Procedure
• More than 50 journals
• Trademark Manual of Examining Procedure

HeinOnline, has an iPhone/iPad/itouch app to download.  Researchers can read articles and documents in PDF,  browse by volume, navigate a volume with the electronic table of contents, and use full advanced searching techniques. The app will allow access to all of the HeinOnline collections our library subscribes to including the Law Journal Library, the Intellectual Property Library, and the U.S. Federal Legislative History Library.

To make sure that the app continues to work for you, you will need to access the app at least every thirty days while on the JMLS wireless network.

BNA

The BNA library (also on Lexis and Westlaw), includes

• Titles 35 (Patents) and 17 (Copyrights), and selected parts of Title 15 (Trademarks in Chapter 22 and Technology Innovation in Chapter 63) of the U.S. Code;
• Title 37 of the Code of Federal Regulations; 
• Patent, Trademark & Copyright Journal® (BNA), a news and analysis serives, available as a daily email alert
• Related treatises through the Intellectual Property Law Resource Center
• United States Patent Quarterly from 1929 to the present, and
• Antitrust & Trade Regulation Report
• Media Law Reporter 
• World Communications Regulation Report
• World Intellectual Property Report

CCH

The CCH library, includes

• Title 21 and 37 of the Code of Federal Regulations; 
• The Manual of Patent Examining Procedure;
• Kluwer IP Manual (guide to international IP law);
• The Copyright Law Reporter
• The Trademark Law Guide
• Many treatises, including
  • IP & Antitrust (Hovenkamp)
  • Business Method Patents
  • Law of Digital Communications
  • Drafting Internet Agreements
  • Guide to Computer Law
  • Law of the Internet
  • Patent Claim Construction
  • Patent Disputes
  • Transfering Invention Rights

Intellectual Property materials are generally found in the call number range KF2971-KF3193.

Books are on 10 or in Academic Success on 6 (and in rare cases, on reserve on 6).

Related Subject Headings include:

Intellectual property -- United States

Copyright -- United States

Patent laws and legislation -- United States

Patents -- United States

License agreements -- United States

Patent licenses -- United States

Trademarks -- Law and legislation -- United States

Trade secrets -- United States

Need more help? Reference librarians are available to meet with students in one-on-one sessions (or in small groups) to discuss research strategies, recommend relevant resources or review specific topics of legal research. 

Contact law-library@uic.edu with the subject you're researching and when you would like to meet. A librarian will get back to you to set up an appointment. You can also schedule an appointment on the library homepage by clicking "Schedule an Online Research Appointment." We ask that you request your appointment at least 2 days in advance, but remember that you can always stop by the reference desk for immediate help with a quick research question.

The library has many IP-related study guides in the Academic Success collection on the 6th Floor. Check nearby call numbers to find them all.