Author: Ge Jiang
Abstract: The creation of works in modern society is becoming more and more impersonal, and the majority of works are created as works made for hire. Reasonable property rules are required to minimize transaction cost and to facilitate smooth dissemination of such works. However, neither the current nor the envisaged amended version of the Chinese Copyright Law provides works made for hire rules, which are fair and predictable enough. Rules with continental European origin and those with Anglo-American characteristics collide with each other, causing confusion in court practice and in research. Awareness of the imperfectness is important for both scholars and practitioners interested in the protection of intellectual properties in China. To bring the status quo into a fairer and more predictable set of rules, colliding rules should be harmonized. In pursuing this goal, the freedom of contract, as strengthened by the envisaged revision of copyright law, is not sufficient. It is also recommendable to make employment a pre-condition of Legal Entities’ Works.
Citation: Jiang, Ge, More Is Less: A Critical Review of Works Made for Hire Rules in China (October 31, 2014). Tsinghua China Law Review, Vol. 7, p. 169, 2015.
Full paper on SSRN: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2678801
