In this paper, we propose a new technique for the design of two-channel perfect reconstruction filter banks (PRFBs). The proposed design approach is generic, and can be applied to the design of both orthogonal as well as linear phase biorthogonal PRFBs. Unlike previous design techniques where the perfect reconstruction (PR) property was structurally imposed, our design starts with trivial filters that yield perfect reconstruction. The length of the filters is subsequently increased to improve their magnitude response without sacrificing either the linear phase/orthogonality or the perfect reconstruction property.