États-Unis d'Amérique

Royaume-Uni

Dessins et modèles industriels

4. Please describe the methods by which industrial designs are protected in the United Kingdom, in particular: -the form or forms of intellectual property used to protect the design (e.g., patent, copyright, sui generis); -the conditions that must be satisfied to obtain the grant of such protection (e.g., whether designs must be new or original and the parameters of these concepts), and a brief description of the registration or granting procedure; -the nature of the rights granted and the term of protection provided; -the nature of remedies available to the owner of each type of protection, including a description of the conditions that may be imposed (e.g., whether commercial use is required); and -whether any exceptions to protection or rights exist for each type of intellectual property involved.

Introduction The United Kingdom's obligations under Section 4 of Part II of the TRIPS Agreement are met by the Registered Designs Act 1949. The Act was significantly amended by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. This latter Act includes in Schedule 4 a copy of the Registered Designs Act 1994 as amended. The Registered Designs Act 1949 provides protection, based upon registration, for designs which are new. Section 1(1) of the Act defines designs as features of shape, configuration, pattern or ornament applied to an article by any industrial process, being features which in the finished article appeal to and are judged by the eye. Excluded from protection are features of shape or configuration of an article which are dictated solely by the function which the article has to perform or are dependent upon the appearance of another article of which the article is intended by the author of the design to form an integral part. Such exceptions are consistent with Article 25.1 of the TRIPS Agreement. Registration Procedure An application for registration of a design is first filed at the United Kingdom Patent Office in the manner and form prescribed in the Act and the Registered Design Rules 1995. A search and examination is then performed to ensure that the design is new. If it is and the formal requirements specified in the Rules and Act are also met, then a certificate of registration is issued. Registration should normally be completed within six months. Rights Conferred The registration of a design under the Act gives the registered proprietor the following exclusive rights: (a)to make or import for sale or hire or for the purposes of a trade or business; or (b)to sell, hire or offer or expose for sale or hire, an article in respect of which the design is registered and to which that design, or a design not substantially different from it, has been applied. Such rights fully meet the requirements of Article 26.1 of the TRIPS Agreement. The duration of protection for a registered design is up to a maximum of 25 years, renewable at five yearly intervals on payment of the required fee. This exceeds the minimum of ten years protection required by Article 26.3 of the TRIPS Agreement. Available Remedies Although the Act does not specifically state what remedies are available to the proprietor, the usual remedies for intellectual property infringement are available: namely, injunctions, damages or an account of profit, orders for delivery up of infringing articles and costs and interest would apply. Further details on this matter are included in the United Kingdom's responses to the checklist of issues on enforcement of intellectual property rights. (IP/C/5).