Protecting Designs

Ashfords' Intellectual Property & Technology Team regularly assist clients in preventing their product designs from being copied by advising them how to secure, maintain and protect their valuable designs. We also help them to exploit them to their full financial potential.

Innovative product design and appearance is crucial to the success of many modern businesses and Ashfords' intellectual property (IP) and technology lawyers are well versed in all aspects of design protection.

• giving advice as to what designs to register and where to register them;
• conducting clearance searches and investigations to check that a design can be used and registered without infringing a third party's earlier legal rights in a design;
• filing, prosecuting and registering UK, Community and International registered designs and co-ordinating and supervising the filing, prosecution and registration of registered designs in national countries around the world;
• conducting registered design infringement and invalidity proceedings before the Courts;
• conducting unregistered design infringement proceedings before the Courts;
• conducting registered design invalidity proceedings before the UK Intellectual Property Office and the Community Designs Office ('OHIM');
• co-ordinating and supervising designs litigation and other types of proceedings abroad;
• conducting all forms of alternative dispute resolution involving designs;
• renewing UK, Community and International registered designs and co-ordinating and supervising the renewal of registered designs in national countries around the world;
• negotiating and drafting manufacturing agreements and all other forms of commercial agreement that involve designs;
• negotiating and drafting licences and assignments of designs; and
  
• conducting, co-ordinating and supervising due diligence on target registered design portfolios.

Recent work undertaken:

• acting for a leading manufacturer of stoves in connection with claims for unregistered design right infringement;
  
• acting for a ship building business in connection with a claim for unregistered design right infringement; and
• acting for a leading clothing retailer in connection with various unregistered design right infringement cases.