Legal protection of intangible cultural heritage : the concept of the safeguarding of expressions of folklore

The complexity of forms and structures of traditional heritage makes it difficult to create effective tools of legal protection on different levels: national, regional and international. From the beginning of the theoretical concept of safeguarding all aspects of heritage, the question arises whether such protection is needed and what kind of legal instruments and measures would be appropriate. At the international level, the foremost initiative is the WIPO Model Provisions for National Laws on the Protection of Expressions of Folklore Against Illicit Exploitation and Other Prejudicial Actions and UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, which not only offers the most sophisticated legal definition of intangible cultural heritage and folklore expressions, but also creates a listing mechanism aimed at drawing attention to intangible culture and the need for its safeguarding. Such an analysis would help to answer the questions whether legal protection is required and would be sufficient; and what, if any, are the appropriate analogies in existing law; and whether a sui generis scheme should be developed.