Designs mean different things to different people. Designs law is predominantly concerned with protecting the outward appearance of manufactured products.

There are two types of design protection. Firstly the unregistered ´design right´ applies automatically in the same way as copyright law; secondly, a registered design, requires a formal application to the Patents Office and grants more extensive protection.

Manufactured products are often the result of significant market research and investment in the development process. These often warrant protection as registered designs. Registered designs are arguably the most cost effective means of registered intellectual property protection.

Registered Designs protection applies to all manner of industrially manufactured products which have some physical characteristic that is visually distinctive and new, whether it was designed for domestic or industrial use. It protects the shape, configuration, surface decoration and patterns from coping, and as such may be made to play an important part in ensuring future returns on investments are realised, by having an effective legal right against predatory copyists.

Design protection comes into its own when the product design and aesthetics are primary characteristics of product differentiation. Designs may be made to play a central role in an integrated IP strategy, adding a layer of protection that would not otherwise exist, and providing an additional means of protection that falls outside the scope of the other forms of intellectual property protection.

Our lawyers act for companies in major industry sectors, technologies and product categories.

Our services range from filing and prosecuting design applications through to assignments, licensing, searching and watching, infringement and validity advice, portfolio management, renewals, due diligence, litigation support and commercialisation advice.