[2010-2011 WTO Case Review Series No. 2]China—Measures for Protection and Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights (WT/DS362/R): Concerning Disciplinary Rules on Enforcement Under the TRIPS Agreement (Japanese)

Using its accession to the WTO as momentum, China has been rapidly developing its systems related to intellectual property. However, many countries and organizations point out that there are still many problems with intellectual property protection in China. In 2007, the United States made a request for bilateral consultations, and eventually the establishment of a panel, under the WTO dispute settlement procedures, concerning measures for protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights taken by China, and a panel report was adopted on this issue in March 2009. While this issue is noteworthy in the sense that the two superpowers of the United States and China are contesting the intellectual property system in China, which as noted has been attracting considerable international concern, it also has significant implications from a legal perspective, particularly in the way that the WTO panel revealed its interpretation of the enforcement rules under the TRIPS Agreement for the first time. In addition, specific details of the WTO panel report are seen as including matters that should prompt Japan to reexamine its own system. This paper introduces the details of the WTO panel report and discusses their significance.