Design Rights

Since the design of products forms an important competitive factor, the copying of products that succeed in the market has also become more and more common. Do your competitors imitate the appearance of your product? By protection of design, you can obtain an exclusive right to your design.

Design right protects the outward appearance of a product or a product part. Aesthetic character or artistry is insignificant for obtaining design protection, and most design protections relate to utility articles. Furthermore, design protection may be applied for the appearance of a product in case the product itself comprises technical solutions which are already known and for which patent or utility model protection may therefore not be applied for.

For instance the following matters are discussed during the basic course on design rights:

• Why to protect design?
• Content of design application
• Preliminary searches before filing an application—obstacles to the use of the design
• Processing of design applications
• What to do the registration of the design is denied?
• Opposition process and appeal process
• Utilization of priority
• Registration of design applications abroad
• Design applications in Finland
• Community design applications
• International design registrations (Hague System)
• Special practices of some countries
• Litigation
• Annulment of design registrations
• Infringement proceedings
• Anti-counterfeiting actions

After the course, the participants master the basics of the design rights system.