Can specialized intellectual property courts foster innovation hubs? Evidence from the establishment of the Guangzhou Intellectual Property Court

Robust judicial protection serves as a critical guarantee for the advancement of new productive forces, the transformation of economic growth models, and the sound development of the intellectual property (IP) system. The establishment of specialized IP courts aims to provide institutional support for indigenous innovation through adjudicative specialization, centralized jurisdiction, and optimized trial mechanisms. Evaluating the impact and transmission mechanisms of such judicial reforms, exemplified by the creation of IP courts, on regional innovation performance is of significant theoretical and policy relevance for enhancing the effectiveness of IP protection and deepening systemic reforms in the IP regime. This study employs panel data from Chinese provinces spanning 2009–2020 and utilizes the synthetic control method to conduct counterfactual analyses of the effects of IP court establishment on regional innovation levels and underlying mechanisms. A series of robustness checks further validates the reliability of the findings. Results indicate that the establishment of the Guangzhou IP Court in Guangdong province significantly enhanced regional innovation capacity. Mechanism analysis reveals that judicial protection of IP rights affects regional innovation capacity through the mediating effect of population mobility and the moderating effect of FDI. These findings offer empirical evidence to support the deepening of judicial reforms in the field of IP, and provide strategic implications for fostering new productive forces and advancing China’s innovation-driven development strategy.