University of Liège - Institute for European Legal Studies

The University

Founded in the XIXth Century, the University of Liège (ULg) is one of Belgium’s largest universities with approximately 18.000 students and 2.800 researchers and scholars.

The university campus is located in the outskirts of the city. Getting to the city centre is
simple – regular public buses travel to and from the city centre in approximately 15 minutes.
Close to the city centre yet in a peaceful environment, the campus provides ideal surroundings for academic achievement.

The Law School

The LL.M. in European Competition and IP law is organized under the auspices of the IEJE, an international research centre dedicated to European law.

The Institute was previously chaired by, and has hosted, many renowned EU law specialists
(F. Dehousse, P. Demaret, R. Joliet, P. Pescatore, S. Van Raepenbusch and M. Wathelet). Five of its former professors and members have been appointed Judges of the European Court of Justice.

The IEJE is composed of 3 professors, 2 PhD candidates, 4 research assistants, and 2 research fellows. It hosts a European Documentation Centre (EDC). The library is certified by the European Commission (Directorate-General for Education and Culture). Through this channel, the Institute benefits from a privileged access to EU databases.

The Program

>>> NEW : For the 2011-2012 academic year, non-EU students are able to choose between the French/English biligual version of our LL.M. and a full English version of that same LL.M.
>>> More information here : www.droit.ulg.ac.be/upload/docs/application/pdf/20…

This LL.M. in European Competition and IP law does not offer another mixture of disparate courses in European law. On the contrary, a unique feature of this programme is to offer students an opportunity to acquire professional skills in two highly specific fields of law.

In a nutshell, our LL.M. in European Competition and IP law offers:

· A full set of cutting-edge courses in IP and competition law, taught by international specialists and leading practitioners ;
· A unique bilingual programme (French/English), in line with the minimum language requirements of most International Organizations (European Commission, EU Court of Justice);
· Seminar sized groups of students ;
· Interactive lectures, based on reading assignments, comments and discussion ;
· A complete choice of conferences and workshops focusing on hot legal topics ;
· Opportunities for summer placement in law firms ;
· Networking opportunities with many legal professionals ;
· Possibilities for students to author case notes in the online law journal e-Competitions (www.concurrences.com).

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Compulsory courses (315 hours - 40 credits)

· Droit européen de la concurrence
· Aspects économiques du droit de la concurrence
· Droit des marques
· Patents (+ exercises 15h)
· Trade related aspects of intellectual property rights in the EU and the WTO
· Droit des aides d’Etat
· Droit d’auteur
· Intellectual Property and Competition Law
· Questions spéciales de droit européen de la concurrence
· Legal writing seminary

Optional courses (50 hours – 5 credits)

Students select one course between:
· EU Competition Procedure and Institutions
· Case Studies in EU Competition Law

Students select two courses amongst:
· Designs
· Droit des medias
· IP Enforcement

Direct link to the program booklet:
www.droit.ulg.ac.be/ieje/fileadmin/IEJE/Pdf/ULG-IE…

Direct link to the "Full-English" addendum for non-EU students:
www.droit.ulg.ac.be/upload/docs/application/pdf/20…

The Faculty

The LL.M. faculty is composed of internationally renown experts in the field of competition
and IP law. In order to guarantee that the training offered to our students is practice-
oriented, most of the professors have a practical experience, acquired in prestigious law
firms, companies or public institutions.

The LL.M. faculty is also a true international team, characterized by the plurality of origins and backgrounds of its members, who come from various countries such as Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Canada and the United-States.

The LL.M. faculty is composed of teachers such as:
· David Hull (Covington & Burling);
· Jacques Derenne (Hogan Lovells LLP);
· Jean-François Bellis (Van Baele and Bellis);
· Jean-Yves Art (Microsoft);
· Daniel Gervais (Vanderbilty University, USA);
· Alain Strowel (Covington & Burling LLP);
· Christof Karl (Bardehle Pagenberg);
· Geertrui Van Overwalle (Tilburg University, the Netherlands);
· Luc Gyselen (Arnold & Potter LLP);
· Nicolas Petit (ULg).

Nicolas Petit's webblog is one of the most famous and reknown competition law blog. It povides a taste of the competition law issues discussed during the course.
See: chillingcompetition.com/

Entry Requirements

The LL.M. in European Competition and IP law is open to all applicants holding either a Bologna Master’s degree or a degree that is deemed equivalent by the admission commission. This degree is also opened to students with degrees from business schools, subject to a decision from the admission commission.

To follow the LL.M. programme, a sound working knowledge of French and English languages is indispensable.

Students willing to improve their English or French may attend language courses organized
at the University during the academic year. (See: www.islv.ulg.ac.be/fr_lm.html).

Application Procedure

The registration form can be downloaded directly from the University of Liège website: www.ulg.ac.be

Tuition and Fees

The University of Liège is a government-funded institution, whose fees are regulated. The
tuition fee for the academic year 2011-2013 amounts to €835.

Informations on scholarship opportunities may be found here: www.ulg.ac.be/cms/c_214209/en/bourses-pour-inscrip…

Location

The city of Liège is located in the heart of Europe.

Located in the close vicinity of Brussels, the city of Liège is one of the principal economic and cultural cities of Belgium. Situated in the valley of the Meuse River, the city is near Belgium’s eastern borders with the Netherlands and Germany.

It has a state of the art railway station and offers a high speed rail network linking the city to Europe - Brussels (90km), Antwerp (120km), Cologne (120km), Luxembourg (140km), Amsterdam (340km), Paris (380km) and London (430km), while Maastricht is only a stone throw away.

Accommodation

Two halls of residence are available on the campus. Many private student rooms are
available in the city centre for affordable prices.

For more information, please contact the Accommodation Service: www.ulg.ac.be/cms/c_201023/logement

Student Life

Due to the small number of enrolled students, strong bonds are often forged between them. Each year, students are invited to take part to Moot Courts.
In 2010, the students of the LLM won the first prize of the "Concours Lamy de la concurrence 2010", in Paris.
Link: www.lamyblog.fr/2010/06/resultat-du-concours-lamy-…

The development of the city of Liège is closely intertwined with the one of the University. Student events and folkloric displays rhythm the life of the city.