The Introduction of Registration

From 1839 a series of laws were passed, gradually extending the boundaries of design protection. The Copyright and Design Act 1839 considerably increased the protection given to fabrics by extending the law to fabrics composed of wool, silk or hair and to mixed fabrics.

The same Act extended protection far beyond the textile trade and gave us the foundations of modern design law. It gave protection to every new or original design including textiles. It also allowed protection for the ornamentation and for the shape and configuration of any article of manufacture.

This Act introduced a system of registration, a Registrar was appointed by the Board of Trade and unless a design was registered before it had been published, the benefits of the Act could not be obtained.

The Design Act 1842 consolidated all earlier Acts and further increased the remedies for infringement, it also divided the possible articles of manufacture and substances into classes. In 1843 this was amended to extend protection of the Act to designs composed of functional features. This meant that designs such as springs for a bicycle, an oil can and gas pilot light were then capable of registration.