Benefits of design protection

Registering your design gives you exclusive rights for the look and appearance of your product. The existence of your design registration may be enough on its own to stop others from trying to exploit your design. If it does not, it gives you the right to take legal action to stop them exploiting your design and to claim damages.

A registered design allows you to:

• sell your design and the intellectual property (IP) rights to it;
• license your design to someone else and retain the IP rights to it.

The public will also benefit from your design as it will be published. Others can gain useful information and see the latest developments in design technology which can be used freely once the design registration ceases.

What if I do not register my design?

If you do not register your designs you must rely on unregistered design right if someone copies your designs without permission.

Further information about designs protection is avaialble in the Designs area.