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Abstract

This Article provides an in-depth and comprehensive analysis of the WTO panel report on China—Measures Affecting the Protection and Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights. It focuses on the lessons the WTO panel report has provided to policymakers, commentators, and intellectual property rights holders. It also advances a novel argument that the outcome of the present dispute reflects the common mistakes foreign businesses in China have made. This Article demonstrates that the present panel report is unlikely to result in dramatic improvements in intellectual property protection and enforcement in China. It underscores the importance of this report for not only intellectual property rights holders, but also those who study China and Chinese law as well as those who intend to conduct business in the Middle Kingdom.

Part II of the Article discusses the key arguments made by China and the United States as well as the major findings in the WTO panel report. Part III focuses on the remedial actions China has undertaken in an effort to bring its laws into conformity with the TRIPS Agreement. This Part explores the limitations of the panel report in providing intellectual property rights holders with meaningful protection. Conscious of these limitations, Part IV examines the key benefits of the WTO panel report to the United States, China, and other less developed countries. Part V outlines the many lessons the report has provided for intellectual property rights holders. It concludes with some concrete suggestions on how to revamp the United States’ intellectual property enforcement strategy vis-à-vis China.

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