HIGH TECH LAW CERTIFICATE

(as amended Fall 2010)

Access the Certificate Application

Earning the Certificate
A student earns the High Tech Law Certificate (HTLC) by taking the Intellectual Property survey course (3 units) and 12 elective units of HTLC-designated courses and satisfying the paper requirement. Courses count towards the certificate only if the student receives a grade of C or better (or credit, if the course is graded credit/no credit), and the student must achieve an overall average of C+ (2.67) in the courses counted towards the certificate with at least 10 graded units. Except as expressly specified below, all courses counting towards the HTLC must be taken at Santa Clara University.

Specializations
Instead of the general HTLC, a student can choose to earn a specialized version of the HTLC if the student (1) satisfies the minimum and average grade requirements, (2) satisfies the paper requirement, and (3) completes the following:

• HTLC, Intellectual Property Specialization
  • Intellectual Property survey (3 units)
  • International IP (3 units)
  • one professional skills course relating to IP (including Patent Prosecution, IP Litigation, Technology Licensing or other courses identified as IP professional skills courses) (2-3 units)
  • 6-7 elective units of HTLC-designated courses to reach a total of 15 units

   

• HTLC, International Specialization
  • Intellectual Property survey (3 units)
  • International IP (3 units)
  • International Law (3 units) or International Business Transactions (3 units)
  • one of the SCU-operated summer abroad programs (variable units)
  • elective units of HTLC-designated or International Law Certificate-designated courses to reach a total of 15 units

   

• HTLC, Corporate Specialization
  • Intellectual Property survey (3 units)
  • Venture Capital (3 units) or Legal Issues of Start-up Businesses (3 units)
  • Securities Regulation (3 units)
  • 6 elective units of HTLC-designated courses to reach a total of 15 units

Students can earn only one certificate specialization.

Honors
A student earns the HTLC (with a specialization, if applicable) “with honors” if the student satisfies all of the applicable requirements and has an overall grade average of B+ (3.67) or better in units counted towards the certificate with at least 10 graded units.

Paper Requirement
To earn an HTLC, the student must complete a Supervised Analytical Writing paper in an HTLC-designated course or, with the HTLI Director’s approval, a paper on a high tech law topic that the student uses (or could use) to satisfy the Supervised Analytical Writing requirements.

Applying for the Certificate

Access the High Tech Law certificate application here. 

Note:  Students matriculated on/before August 1, 2010, who wish to apply for the certificate under the rules in effect at the time of their matriculation should use the certificate application located here.

Candidacy
Full-time students can indicate progress towards the HTLC on their resumes if they have completed the following number of units:

The requirements adjust proportionately for part-time students.

Multiple Certificates

Students may earn multiple certificates if they meet the requirements for each certificate. However, each certificate may include restrictions on student “double-dipping” to satisfy certificate requirements.

Students Matriculated on/before August 1, 2010
Students matriculated prior to August 1, 2010 can choose to complete an HTLC (or, as applicable, an IHTLC) either under: (1) the requirements in effect at the time of their matriculation, or (2) these requirements.

If you are a student martriculated on/before August 1, 2010, and are interested in pursuing the High Tech Law Certificate in effect at the time of your matriculation, click here. For information on International High Tech Law Certificate requirements, click here.

The requirement that students have a minimum of 10 graded units for the certificate or honors applies only to students matriculated on or after August 1, 2011.