The Copyrightability of Works of Applied Art in China ‒ Case Note of Guiding Case No. 157 by the Supreme People’s Court of the People’s Republic of China

Abstract

Abstract With comparatively new copyright laws, China’s courts are still crystalizing the standards of copyrightability. In recent years, case law has particularly clarified that works of applied art qualify for copyright protection, but the enforcement of such claims was long deemed risky in practice due to the uncertainty regarding the interpretation of the protection requirements. Guiding Case No. 157 of the Supreme People’s Court of the People’s Republic of China demonstrates a newfound consistency in the application of copyright protection standards to works of applied art. Doctrinally, the case law analysis highlights that Chinese courts have merged two distinct copyrightability requirements, originality and aesthetics, settling for that which we call a threshold of ‘original aesthetics’. Practitioners litigating international portfolios should be aware of the potential to successfully enforce copyright claims over works of applied art in China. The doctrinal delineation between originality and aesthetics is of importance not only within the scope of academic research, but also serves trial attorneys when pleading copyright infringement cases.