The Paradox of Confucian Determinism: Tracking the Root Causes of Intellectual Property Rights Problem in China

Abstract

This article attempts to track China’s intellectual property rights (“IPR”) enforcement problem through exploring its fundamental institutional defects that fuels impunity of, or at least fails instilling an ethos hostile to, IPR infringements. By examining China’s philosophical and institutional predisposition, this article argues that counterfeiting and piracy are not problems caused by the Confucian ethics, as the conventional wisdom underscores, but rather, among other things, a unique political phenomenon resulting from the systemic dystrophy fundamental to the institutional development. This article concludes that, to a large extent, the IPR enforcement problems in China are attributed to its unique bureaucracy characterized by the collectivist ideology, decentralized responsibilities, the lack of transparencies and the inadequate judiciary.

Keywords: Intellectual Property, Enforcement, Confucianism, China

JEL Classification: K33