designs

Designs protect the external appearance of all or part of a product, giving it its aesthetic (rather than functional) characteristics, derived from its lines, forms, textures, colours, materials, or ornamentation.

The designs of industrial or artisanal articles that are new and distinctive in nature compared with previously known designs are open to registration. Ornamentation in itself, applicable to any product, can also be protected as a design. Design protection could likewise apply to an item or collection of jewellery, bags, footwear, forms, prints, the interior décor of premises, the design of websites, graphical interfaces or the icons seen on computers or mobile telephones, etc.

Registered designs constitute a major commercial asset for any company, artisan or designer. 

We handle the preparation, filing and processing of your design applications. To assist our clients, we have accreditation before the Spanish Patents and Trademarks Office (SPTO), the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

To protect designs, drawings and industrial models abroad, we have an extensive network of trusted associates worldwide, who we work together with in the preparation, filing and processing of our clients' design applications.

On occasion, one single creation may give rise to different forms of protection, one of which would correspond to the design. Through appropriate analysis and consultancy we establish the possible strategies in accordance with our clients' interests, so as to obtain robust protection to the greatest extent possible.

In certain circumstances, a company or individual's activities may be limited or hampered by the existence of a third-party design registration. The different forms of territorial design protection Laws and Regulations establish defence mechanisms to raise oppositions, invalidation actions and appeals. Our clients draw on our experience and advice in recommending the actions that may prove most appropriate in each case, and to prepare, lodge and process these actions with the competent bodies.

Familiarity with the latest designs protected in connection with a product type, the designs that certain competitor companies have protected, and what these protections imply, could offer an advantage in the development of new products, avoiding unnecessary risks.

To this end we offer clients the opportunity to conduct design searches based on the protected product type, covering possible companies that could hold design rights, etc. The search results serve to ascertain the scope of protection granted, its limitations, who holds the rights, and their current legal status. It is also possible to establish monitoring of certain applications or designs granted, to detect any relevant event occurring in the process or their legal lifespan.

We perform the analysis and consultancy of portfolios of design rights, a particularly useful tool when a client considers establishing a licensing agreement or the acquisition of a portfolio from a third party.

Industrial Property assets are one of the most important possessions of any company or rights holder. As such, the exclusive protection offered by a design may be subject to assignment, licensing and transfer. We appraise and process the documentation required to register the transaction with the relevant Official Offices.

Agueda Bondia

Industrial Engineer. Spanish Patent and Trademark Attorney. European Patent Attorney (EPO). European Union Trademark and Designs Attorney. Senior Associate.

Ivan Herce

Lawyer. Professional associate.

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