Overview
- Degree awarded
- Master of Laws (LLM)
- Duration
- 1 year
- Entry requirements
-
We require a UK bachelor's degree with a First or Upper Second (2.1) classification or the overseas equivalent in Law. Candidates should demonstrate a strong background in Law modules relevant to the course, including Public Law and Contract Law and achieve scores of 2.1 or above in relevant modules.
When assessing your academic record, we consider the grades you have achieved and the standing of the institution where you studied your qualification.
- How to apply
- Apply online
Course options
| Full-time | Part-time | Full-time distance learning | Part-time distance learning | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LLM | Y | N | N | N |
Course overview
- Attain substantive intellectual property law knowledge at national and international levels.
- Develop your skills in critical analysis, reasoning and debate.
- Receive professional training for a career in intellectual Property Law.
Open days
These are an opportunity to find out about the course, meet students and staff, and tour the campus and facilities.
If you receive an offer, we will invite you to a visit day where you learn about the School, teaching and learning, study opportunities and student life.
Fees
For entry in the academic year beginning September 2025, the tuition fees are as follows:
-
LLM (full-time)
UK students (per annum): £16,000
International, including EU, students (per annum): £29,500
Further information for EU students can be found on our dedicated EU page.
The fees quoted above will be fully inclusive for the course tuition, administration and computational costs during your studies.
All fees for entry will be subject to yearly review and incremental rises per annum are also likely over the duration of courses lasting more than a year for UK/EU students (fees are typically fixed for International students, for the course duration at the year of entry). For general fees information please visit: postgraduate fees . Always contact the department if you are unsure which fee applies to your qualification award and method of attendance.
Self-funded international applicants for this course will be required to pay a deposit of £1000 towards their tuition fees before a confirmation of acceptance for studies (CAS) is issued. This deposit will only be refunded if immigration permission is refused. We will notify you about how and when to make this payment.
Policy on additional costs
All students should normally be able to complete their programme of study without incurring additional study costs over and above the tuition fee for that programme. Any unavoidable additional compulsory costs totalling more than 1% of the annual home undergraduate fee per annum, regardless of whether the programme in question is undergraduate or postgraduate taught, will be made clear to you at the point of application. Further information can be found in the University's Policy on additional costs incurred by students on undergraduate and postgraduate taught programmes (PDF document, 91KB).
Scholarships/sponsorships
There are several scholarships and bursaries that you may be eligible for.
Manchester Alumni Scholarship Scheme
The Manchester Alumni Scholarship Scheme offers a £3,000 reduction in tuition fees to University of Manchester alumni who achieved a first-class bachelor's degree and are progressing to a postgraduate taught master's course.
Manchester Master's Bursary
The University of Manchester is committed to widening participation in master's study and allocates 75 awards of £4,000 each year.
Postgraduate loans for master's students
If you're coming to Manchester this year to begin postgraduate study, you could qualify for a loan from the UK government.
For more information on our awards, see fees and funding or search the University's postgraduate funding database .
Contact details
- School/Faculty
- School of Social Sciences
- Contact name
- Postgraduate Taught Admissions Team
- Telephone
- +44 (0) 161 306 5500
- pg-law@manchester.ac.uk
- Website
- https://www.socialsciences.manchester.ac.uk/law/
- School/Faculty
-
See: School Subjects
Courses in related subject areas
Use the links below to view lists of courses in related subject areas.
Entry requirements
Academic entry qualification overview
We require a UK bachelor's degree with a First or Upper Second (2.1) classification or the overseas equivalent in Law. Candidates should demonstrate a strong background in Law modules relevant to the course, including Public Law and Contract Law and achieve scores of 2.1 or above in relevant modules.
When assessing your academic record, we consider the grades you have achieved and the standing of the institution where you studied your qualification.
English language
Applicants whose first language is not English should meet the following language requirements:
- IELTS Academic test score of 7 overall, including 7 in writing with no further component score below 6.5
- TOEFL IBT 100 with 25 in writing and no further score below 22 in each section. TOEFL code for Manchester is 0757
- Pearson Test of English (PTE) score of 76 overall, with 76 in writing and no further score below 70
Priority will be given to applicants who have provided evidence of meeting these scores when making offers.
Pre-Sessional English Courses
We will consider applicants who do not meet these scores but you will be required to complete a pre-sessional English language course at the University of Manchester prior to the start of the course.
To be considered for a pre-sessional English language course for this programme we require the following minimum IELTS (Academic) scores:
6 Week Pre-Sessional Course : IELTS 6.5 overall with 6.5 in writing and no more than one sub-skill of 6.0.
10 Week Pre-sessional Course : IELTS 6.0 overall with 6.0 or above in each sub-skill
If you have not yet completed your current academic study and are interested in studying a pre-sessional course, you must hold an IELTS for UKVI (Academic) test certificate to ensure that you are eligible for a separate visa for the English language course.
English language test validity
Some English Language test results are only valid for two years. Your English Language test report must be valid on the start date of the course.
Applicants from Majority English-speaking countries
If you are a national of a majority English-speaking country (or have studied for a full bachelor's degree or higher from one of these countries) you may be exempt from submitting further evidence of English language proficiency.
Other international entry requirements
We accept a range of qualifications from across the globe. To help international students, the university provides specific information for many individual countries. Please see our country-specific information page for guidance on the academic and English language qualifications which may be accepted from your country.
Application and selection
How to apply
Advice to applicants
As there is a high demand for our courses we operate a staged admissions process with selection deadlines throughout the year. Due to the competition for places and high quality of applications that we receive, we give preference to students from high ranking institutions and with grades above our minimum entry requirements.
Please ensure you submit all supporting documentation with your application before the application deadline to avoid a delay in processing.
Applications for 2025 entry:
Stage 1: Application received by 7th December 2024 ; Application update by 21st February 2025
Stage 2: Application received by 2nd March 2025 ; Application update by 1st May 2025
Stage 3: Application received by 4th May 2025 ; Application update by 5th June 2025
Stage 4: Application received by 1st July 2025 ; Application update by 25th July 2025
Whilst we aim to give you a decision on your application by the deadline date, in some instances due to the competition for places and the volume of applications received, it may be necessary to roll your application forward to the next deadline date.
Applications received after our final selection deadline will be considered at our discretion if places are still available.
Please note: All places are subject to availability and if you apply at one of the later stages, some courses may already be reaching capacity or be closed to further applications. We, therefore, recommend that you apply early in the cycle to avoid disappointment.
Tuition fee deposits
If you are successful in receiving an offer, you will be required to pay a tuition fee deposit of £1,000 by the deadline stated in your offer letter to confirm your place. We ask for the deposit as competition for places is high and there is limited availability. The deposit amount is then deducted from your tuition fees when you register on the course.
Re-applications
Course details
Course description
The LLM in Intellectual Property Law gives you an in-depth understanding of the law concerning intellectual property and patents in modern business.
Our experts take you through the economic, social and philosophical aspects of intellectual property law development and you will be encouraged to critically analyse the current legal framework.
You will gain advanced knowledge in intellectual property law and concomitant policy, and learn about national and international grant enforcement and defence of intellectual property rights on a multi-jurisdictional basis.
Aims
Our course aims are to develop your understanding of the law concerning intellectual property and patents in modern business.
With experts in intellectual property law, you examine the economic, social and philosophical aspects of IP law development, advancing your knowledge in intellectual property law and concomitant policy.
You will also learn about national and international grant, enforcement and defence of intellectual property rights on a multi-jurisdictional basis.
You will connect the wider profession to important industry sectors such as life sciences, healthcare, communications and information technology.
Special features
Our award-winning careers service offers you year-round dedicated postgraduate support including employability sessions, and advice for those aspiring to a PhD and career in academia.
Teaching and learning
We use various teaching methods across the course to enable you to participate in debate and hone the analytical and reasoning skills vital to legal and business professionals.
Coursework and assessment
Most course units are assessed by standard methods, either:
- one unseen written examination;
- one coursework essay;
- or a combination of these two methods of assessment.
The assessment method of each individual course unit is listed in the course unit description on the website.
The course has a compulsory research component, you will have to submit a 12,000 word dissertation (60 credits).
The research element of the course is supported by weekly research methodology lectures delivered throughout semesters one and two, designed to improve your legal writing and research skills.
For specialised streams, your dissertation topic must be within those streams, for general LLM dissertation topics, your dissertation must be within one of your chosen course units.
Course unit details
You will be doing 180 credits in total, 120 of which will be taught course units and the remaining 60 credits in the form of a dissertation.
The LLM course typically offers around 30 different course units in any one year, and will always reflect a wide range of subjects across the legal spectrum.
There will usually be course units offered on diverse topics, such as:
- international trade and corporate law;
- financial services regulation;
- European law;
- international economic law;
- intellectual property law;
- human rights law;
- corporate governance;
- law and finance in emerging markets.
Course units are worth 15 or 30 credits each. You will be required to select course units to a total of 120 credits, so you will choose a minimum of four course units or, you may be able to choose a maximum of eight course units to make up your course of study. This involves taking one core course unit (International Financial Services Regulation) of 30 credit value, and the remaining 90 credits from an approved list of commercial law options.
The course has a compulsory 12,000 word dissertation (60 credits). The taught element of the degree course will total 120 credits and the research element will total 60 credits, you will study 180 credits for a full master's course. The dissertation must be within the area of one of the units you have chosen. The research element of the course is supported by weekly research methodology lectures delivered throughout semester one and two, designed to improve your legal writing and research skills.
Course unit list
The course unit details given below are subject to change, and are the latest example of the curriculum available on this course of study.
| Title | Code | Credit rating | Mandatory/optional |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trade Mark Law and Policy | LAWS70261 | 30 | Mandatory |
| Patent Law and Policy | LAWS70271 | 30 | Mandatory |
| Copyright Law and Policy | LAWS70292 | 30 | Mandatory |
| LL.M Dissertation | LAWS70990 | 60 | Mandatory |
| Academic Skills for Legal Studies | LAWS50000 | 0 | Optional |
| Postgraduate Competition Law in an International Context | LAWS60172 | 30 | Optional |
| The Principles and Practice of Corporate Governance | LAWS70362 | 30 | Optional |
| International Commercial Arbitration and Mediation Law | LAWS77082 | 30 | Optional |
Scholarships and bursaries
The School offers a number of awards for students applying for master's study.
To find our more, please visit our master's funding opportunity search page.
What our students say
Facilities
You will be supported by the first-class resources you would expect of a top law school.
In addition to the networked study spaces, you can access a specialist moot courtroom, enabling you to hone your debating skills in a realistic court setting.
There is also The University of Manchester Library , which houses a substantial collection of law books and periodicals, including texts to support all the degrees we offer.
Disability support
Careers
Career opportunities
This master's course offers training for a professional career in intellectual property law in a range of industries, such as life sciences, healthcare, communications and information technology sectors.
It also allows the development of research skills for those wishing to pursue an academic career in intellectual property law.
The University has its own dedicated Careers Service that you would have full access to as a student and for two years after you graduate. At Manchester you will have access to a number of opportunities to help boost your employability .