The call for applications for funding for 2022-23 is now closed.
Program overview
The Intellectual Property (IP) Legal Clinics Program, one of the elements of the IP Strategy, is a grant program intended to encourage the establishment or enhancement of IP legal clinics within Canadian law schools. Program funding in the amount of $200,000 per year will support the provision of free or low cost access to basic IP advisory services, and foster the development of future IP experts by increasing the exposure of university students to IP issues.
Program objectives
The Program will enable law students to learn more about IP, help businesses get a sense of their IP needs and facilitate access to the professionals that can provide quality IP advice. This will improve the understanding of IP among those served by the IP legal clinics and increase access to IP services for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), women, and indigenous innovators as they seek to develop effective IP strategies and protect their innovations. This program contributes to the objectives of the IP Strategy as it will help Canadian innovators and entrepreneurs better understand, protect, and commercialize IP.
Why this program is important
The objectives of the Program, and of the IP Strategy more broadly, are directly aligned with priority areas under the Government of Canada's Innovation and Skills Plan. In particular, it supports People, Skills and Communities — IP legal clinics educate and support innovators and entrepreneurs needing free or low cost IP education and assistance; and Companies, Investment and Growth - IP legal clinics provide free or low cost assistance to SMEs and start-ups which will enable companies to grow, protect the investments they've already made, and find new investors. The IP Legal Clinics Program will be a new resource that law schools can access to enable these objectives.
Contact Information
Telephone (toll-free in Canada): 1-800-328-6189
Telephone (Ottawa): 613-954-5031
Fax: 343-291-1913
TTY (for hearing-impaired): 1-866-694-8389
By email: ic.ipstrategy-strategieenmatieredepi.ic@canada.ca
Business hours: 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Eastern Time)
By mail:
Marketplace Framework Policy Branch
C.D. Howe Building
235 Queen Street, 10th floor, East Tower
Ottawa, ON K1A 0H5
Canada