Dr. Christopher Buccafusco

Assistant Professor

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Biography

Christopher Buccafusco joined the Duke Law faculty in 2022, previously teaching in New York City and Chicago. His research encompasses a wide range of topics and methods related to creativity, innovation, and intellectual property law. He conducts novel social science experiments to explore the nature of innovation in markets and writes on evolving issues concerning copyright, patent, trademark law, music copyright litigation, artificial intelligence, pharmaceutical patents, and IP rights in industrial design. Over the past decade, Buccafusco has co-hosted an annual workshop on empirical methods in intellectual property law at the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office and Northwestern University Law School. He is a co-author of "Happiness Law" (University of Chicago Press, 2015), which includes a series of articles applying recent social science research on well-being and hedonic psychology to various legal issues, including criminal, administrative, tort, and intellectual property laws. His work has been widely quoted in media outlets such as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Rolling Stone. Notably, his article on the economics of airplane seat reclining was covered by numerous media outlets worldwide. Before joining Duke Law, Buccafusco taught at Cardozo Law School and Chicago-Kent College of Law, where he received the Student Bar Association’s Professor of the Year award and a university-wide award for excellence in teaching. In 2024, he received the Distinguished Teaching Award from the Duke Bar Association.

Research Interests

Courses

Torts Copyright Law Law and Social Science Colloquium Design Law

Requirements for Duke University

Master Program
Requirements
GPA Requirement
Required:3.2
TOEFL
Listening
Required:22
Reading
Required:22
Writing
Required:24
Speaking
Required:26
Total
Required:90
IELTS
Overall
Required:7
Prerequisites
Multivariable Calculus Introduction to Physics (mechanics) Introduction to Chemistry
Application Checklist
  • Transcripts
  • Statement of Purpose
  • Three Letters of Recommendation
  • Resume/CV
  • Application Fee ($95)
  • Video Introduction
Specialization Notes

Department of Biomedical Engineering (MS program)