Elgar Advanced Introductions are stimulating and thoughtful introductions to major fields in the social sciences, business and law, expertly written by the world’s leading scholars. Designed to be accessible yet rigorous, they offer concise and lucid surveys of the substantive and policy issues associated with discrete subject areas. Concise yet comprehensive, this book provides an eloquent overview of the international patent system, outlining the agreements states have entered to protect inventions and enforce patent rights. It explores the mechanisms that ensure compliance in relation to these obligations and how they have been interpreted by international bodies. Margo A. Bagley and Rochelle C. Dreyfuss assess different systems for protecting technological innovations, such as trade secrets, design protection, genetic resources, traditional knowledge, digital sequence information and AI. They examine the procedural agreements facilitating patent applications in multiple countries, including the Patent Cooperation Agreement, the Strasbourg Agreement and the Budapest Treaty. The book concludes with the authors’ call for greater attention to be paid to building an equitable system that recognizes all forms of knowledge creation, protects public health and advances the goals of sustainable development. Key Features: Analyzes emerging trends on regional protection, converging standards and global enforcement Uses examples from the COVID pandemic to illustrate the patent system's impact on countries of differing income levels Details the substantive obligations of the Paris Convention, TRIPS Agreement and preferential trade agreements regarding the protection of technological innovations, including patent, trade secret and design protection Students and scholars of patent law and international intellectual property law more generally will greatly benefit from this unique introduction. It is also a hugely beneficial resource for any stakeholders working with and within the patent system or with technological innovation more broadly.