Who owns what information on the Internet? Who should own what information on the Internet? As usage of the Net intensifies, these questions are becoming increasingly important and controversial. Lawyers, legal scholars, judges, lawmakers, and Internet users disagree concerning how the existing set of legal rules should be applied to this new medium -- and disagree even more sharply concerning whether and how those rules should be modified to manage the medium better.

The primary purpose of this series of lectures and discussions is to enable participants to explore these issues in some depth. Over a seven-week period, Professor William Fisher, assisted by a team of Teaching Fellows, will organize an exploration of some of the most controversial topics in this rapidly changing field.

A secondary purpose of this series is to explore the educational potential of the Internet. Traditional, formal, higher education has many merits -- but has many limitations as well. Our hypothesis is that the Internet makes possible a different kind of learning -- more interactive, less exclusive, less expensive, equally sophisticated, and perhaps more fun. One of our aspirations is to test that hypothesis. In that spirit, we welcome comments, criticism, and suggestions concerning how the lectures and discussions might be organized better. (Just click on the "Help" icon at any time.)

To access the course materials, select the "syllabus" button above.    If you are not familiar both with the technology of the Internet and with copyright, patent, and trademark law, you should explore our self-guided Orientation Program.