This course is a brief introduction to the fundamentals of U.S. patent law. The course begins with a primer on the economic rationale behind the patent system and the institutions of patent issuance and adjudication in the United States, as well as the relevant business context. The course covers the doctrines governing patent validity—patentable subject matter, utility, enablement, written description, novelty and nonobivousness. It then explains the process of patent infringement adjudication, including claim construction, direct and indirect infringement, and the doctrine of equivalents, and the remedies available to infringement plaintiffs such as injunctions and damages. The course concludes with a brief consideration of the problem of patent trolls and patent reform.