Design Practice
Our design practice includes, among others, the following:
- filing and prosecuting design applications;
- verification of the validity of design patents;
- maintaining validity of design patents;
- recording any amendments in design patents;
- providing legal services related to licensing and assignment;
- negotiating settlement of any disputes;
- opposing against refusals of protection.
Documents required to file a design application:
- Specification, including:
- Designation of the design;
- Class on the International Classification for Industrial Designs (Locarno classification);
- Purpose and the field of the design;
- Description of analogues of the design including the nearest one of them, i.e. prototype;
- The aggregate of essential features of the applied design with indication of distinctions.
(If such specification does not exist, we may prepare it).
- Black-and-white photograph by size 18x24cm (13x18 or 9x12):
- general view foreshortened from the front - 8 copies,
- if necessary, views from the left, right, behind, the front, and above - 2 copies of each.
- A prototype photograph.
- Filing particulars, namely:
- Applicant's name, country/state of incorporation, address;
- Designer's name, country/state of residence, address.
- Certified copy of the priority document (in case of claiming the conventional priority).
- Power of Attorney (the requirements are similar to those established for the PoA for a patent above).
In accordance with the Patent Law, property rights for industrial designs are certified by a patent.
The Patent Law envisages two stages of examination of the design: (i) formal examination, including the examination of the application’s content and the verification of the filing and priority date; and (ii) substantial examination, including the examination of novelty and originality of the design application.
A design patent is issued for 15 years from the filing date, with its possible extension for additional five (5) years. Annuities are calculated from the application filing date and are to be paid annually.
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