Registered Designs
Patents can be used to protect the technical features of a product (e.g. how it is put together or how it works): registered designs, on the other hand, are used to protect the appearance of the whole or part of a product.
For a design to be registrable it must be new, and it must have "individual character". There are certain exclusions to registration - features of appearance of a product which are solely dictated by the product's technical function or are shaped merely in order to match the appearance of another product or to connect to that product; a design contrary to public policy or morality. For both the UK and Community Registered Design, there is a grace period of 12 months before the filing date for disclosure of the design by the designer or with the consent of the designer.
Registered Designs typically have to be registered on a country-by-country basis, although there are some International Treaties which allow applicants to cover a number of countries at once by means of a single registration under certain circumstances. One of the most important of these is the new Community Design Registration system: this allows companies to cover all of the European Union countries by means of a single Community registration. Applications for Community Registered Designs may be filed at OHIM from 1 April 2003. Applications for registered designs in the United Kingdom are made to the Patent Office. They last for a maximum of 25 years subject to the payment of renewal fees every five years, as do Community Registered Designs.
For further information on registered designs, please contact a member of our Design and Copyright Team.
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