Biography & Scholarship
Tim Murphy joined the College of Law as an Assistant Professor of Law in 2021 and teaches Contracts and various intellectual property courses. Tim specializes in intellectual property law and in particular, trade secrets issues. Prior to this current appointment, Tim was a clinical professor for three years, teaching in entrepreneurship clinics at Idaho and the University of Michigan Law School.
Before entering academia full-time, Tim was Senior Patent and Trademark Counsel at Micron Technology, Inc. His responsibilities at Micron included managing a portion of Micron’s patent and non-patent IP portfolios. Additionally, Tim was responsible for managing the legal group responsible for all of Micron’s non-disclosure agreements. Tim also spent many years at Micron doing intellectual property licensing in support of Micron’s M&A, joint venture, and joint development programs, in addition to supporting day-to-day business operations.
Prior to joining the Micron legal team, Tim practiced as a patent attorney/agent for several years in Portland, Oregon and Boise, Idaho. Before attending the University of Michigan Law School, Tim held various positions with multiple companies, including R&D engineer, manufacturing engineer, equipment technician, hydroelectric plant operator, and diesel truck mechanic. Tim also served six years in the U.S. Navy as a nuclear reactor plant mechanic and, as a crew member on board the U.S.S. South Carolina, participated in Operation Desert Storm.
Tim's research primarily inquires into the theoretical underpinnings of trade secrets law and interrogates the manner in which trade secrets law impacts employer/employee relationships in U.S. workplaces.