The fields of intellectual property have broadened and deepened in so many ways that commentators struggle to keep up with the ceaseless rush of developments and hot topics. Kritika: Essays on Intellectual Property is a series that is designed to help authors escape this rush. It creates a forum for authors who wish to more deeply question, investigate and reflect upon the evolving themes and principles of the discipline.

This second volume of Kritika, like the first, sees its contributors writing on core themes and concepts of intellectual property. The essays deal with the current limits of economic knowledge and approaches to intellectual property; China's approach to innovation and intellectual property; a functional and constructivist account of intellectual property rights; the evolution of the essential facilities doctrine, including in the Chinese context; the emergence of multi-layered IP protection for designed objects; the changing balance of the interests of trade mark proprietors, competitors and consumers; the interaction between place and non-agricultural geographical indications; and the trajectory of increased protection for intellectual property and some of its likely consequences.

With contributions from: Giuseppe Colangelo; Vincenzo Di Cataldo; Susy Frankel; Johanna Gibson; Keith E. Maskus; Roberto Pardolesi; Thomas Riis; Jens Schovsbo; Ken Shao and Michel Vivant