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Law students from across the world, as well as across Indiana, find the Center for Intellectual Property Law and Innovation to be a great place to further their knowledge and explore their career paths.

New to the IP Center and IU McKinney School of Law for Fall 2017 is LL.M. student Mosun Oke, who is from Lagos, Nigeria. Oke did her undergraduate study in her home country, and received an LL.M. in international commercial law from the University of Leicester, United Kingdom. She worked as an attorney first in corporate and commercial law before deciding it was time to carve a niche for herself in the area of intellectual property law.

“This field of law is a developing area in my country, and there is a need for policy reform,” Oke said. She also plans to pursue a doctor of juridical science degree once her LL.M. studies on the intellectual property law track are completed.

Oke said she chose to study at IU McKinney because of the expertise of professors in their relevant fields, the practical approach to the study of law, and the law school’s culture of inclusiveness and diversity.

Once she completes her studies, Oke said she intends to “return to my country and use the knowledge and practical skills acquired in advocating for policy reform.” She also intends to work as a consultant to individuals, multinational corporations, and the government in the area of intellectual property law.

Law students frequently take advantage of the summer break in classes to explore areas of law they wish to know more about. During Summer 2017, 3L J.D. student Jane Doll externed at Eli Lilly & Company, as did 2L J.D. student Megan Hedrick; and S.J.D. candidate Fengquan Li, LL.M. ’16, completed an externship at CMG Worldwide.

Doll is originally from Batesville, Indiana, and completed her undergraduate studies at Franklin College, where she majored in English and chemistry. She plans to complete the requirements for IU McKinney’s IP Certificate and wants to practice in the patent law field after she completes her legal education. She has taken part in externships at the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission, and the Indiana Horse Racing Commission, before undertaking an externship at Eli Lilly and Company.

Doll worked on a variety of projects, she said, including patent office responses, and claim drafting. She also attended inventorship meetings, and other meetings with Lilly scientists.

Hedrick grew up in Greenwood, Indiana, and majored in biochemistry at Indiana University, where she also minored in mathematics. She holds a master’s degree in molecular biology and cell physiology, which she earned at Indiana State University. She plans to pursue the IP Certificate, and enrolled at IU McKinney with the goal of becoming a patent attorney after graduation.

In addition to her experience with Eli Lilly, Hedrick completed a patent externship at the Naval Surface Warfare Center – Crane, during Spring 2017.

“I love the diversity of things that I have done with Lilly,” Hedrick said. The list of projects that she was able to work on during her externship included patent drafting, helping with asset acquisition research, evaluating licensing portfolios, conducting freedom to operate searches, responses to office actions from the United States Patent and Trademark Office, and attending a pro bono event at Eskenazi Hospital, among other tasks.

Li is from China, and is working toward her doctor of juridical science degree. She began working as an intern at CMG in April, and resumed that during the Fall 2017 semester.

CMG focuses on protection of intellectual property and promotion of IP rights. Li’s responsibilities there include contract drafting, negotiating, and finalizing licensing and permission agreements, among other tasks. In addition, she conducted legal research and drafted Digital Millennium Copyright Act takedown notices, which controls access to copyrighted works.

Li said that she has learned something about IP law with all of the tasks that she has been given at CMG.

“The mentorship I received was very helpful in terms of furthering my goals,” Li said. “I got to participate and contribute to important business tasks under my mentor’s supervision. Through this internship, I have gotten to know more methodologies, and how to practice my intellectual property knowledge in the real world. It has been truly a great experience.”