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In Intellectual Property Law, design, meaning design rights, protects the visual appearance of products. These rights give you the exclusive use of your design or the right to authorise its use by an approved party.
To qualify for design rights, your design must be new, distinctive and have a tangible, physical form. Although a design application must be new at the time of filing, a 12 month grace period for self disclosure is available under certain circumstances.
A design right, in Australia, differs from a patent but offers a similar form of protection. The protection is however limited to the visual appearance of the registered design whereas a patent protects functionality. A design must be applied for via the same government body (IP Australia) and shares a complex approvals process. A design can be significantly quicker to grant and be enforceable than a patent.
Exactly what a design is can vary across the commercial world. So long as a design meets the core criteria above, it can be classed as a design under IP law.
Design can refer to decorative patterns, graphic symbols, the shape of products and their packaging or a combination of all of these. Even the external look of a shop or its fit-out may qualify for design rights.
Examples of registered designs include the unique shape of a Coca-Cola bottle, Apple store frontages, the red sole of a Louboutin shoe and the shape of a Dyson hairdryer.
A design is typically, instantly recognisable as being linked with a specific brand or product.
Once registered, your design rights in Australia last up to a maximum of 10 years, with a renewal required at five years.
I found them online and initially I was bit hesitant to talk to them about my problem but when I spoke to Barry, I felt more comfortable, and he gave me all the information and advice I wanted without even thinking that I am going to give him business or not. Finally, I went with them, and they made the entire process so smooth and easy for me. john was keeping us updated with each step he was doing. I would recommend these guys for any patent or trademark related service.
I would like to express my thanks to Barry and his team at IP Guardian in Sydney for their assistance with our recent Trademark application. Barry was highly professional, readily available throughout the process and clearly communicated expectations. Barry even helped us refine our application so that we had a greater chance of success which was very much appreciated to avoid extra costs. I would highly recommend Ip Guardian for all your Trademark and Intellectual Property needs.
Barry, last week, you and your professional team, made my year (or probably my next 21 years). So thank you so much for your executive, calm yet very effective actions under extream pressure. Elias Hajjar, Director, TROLLEYON PTY LTD
Informative, understood the business, what it needed and answered questions in a friendly and approachable manner. Easy decision to continue working with IPGuardian for future trademarking
From the day I contacted Barry Meskin until now with my silly amateur questions, he has been nothing short of amazing. I actually NEVER leave reviews anywhere, but I felt the need to do so for Barry and his team. I myself am a tradie, so I felt intimidated speaking to an attorney. But the second I spoke to him on the phone, he made me feel right at home. Never pressured me into any decisions, yet when I decided to go ahead with him, he delivered what I needed much quicker than what I was expecting. I cannot speak highly enough of him and recommend his services 100%.
The team at IP Guardian have made the process extremely straight forward and easy for us to understand exactly what was required. I will highly recommend to our clients who need help with IP.
I have dealt with Barry over the years, his advice and experience has helped me greatly. Looking for to working with him and his team again. Maher.
IP Guardian helps protect words, symbols, letters, numbers, names, signatures, phrases, sounds, shapes and smells. Yes, I said smells.
We've had the pleasure to work closely with Barry for many years. He has been exceptional to deal with and has a keen focus in providing a commercial led IP "go to market" strategy for start-ups and well known brands. Makes it easy and always advises on different ways to navigate through the IP process.
Barry Meskin @ IP Guardian is an experienced and extremely knowledgeable expert in the domain of intellectual property, patents and trademarks. In addition he has been extremely responsive and very professional in all our dealings. I wholeheartedly recommend Barry's services to any business or anyone seeking advice in this area - great quality and great value.