INDUSTRIAL DESIGNS

The registration of the RCD design in the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) in Alicante, Spain, gives its owner an exclusive right to use identical design or a design, that differs only in immaterial details within the whole EU. A trademark is registered under the RCD procedures after verification of correctness of the application documents. The protection lasts within the whole EU in the first protection period for 5 years with the possibility of prolonging for next 5 years periods, up to 25 years. In one application there can be applied generally unlimited number of design version under condition of payment additional fee for a second and each next version of the design.

As of 01.05.2004 Poland has been a party to RCD, similar to 9 other states accessing the EU at that time. The community designs filed under the RCD procedure are subject to the procedure of verification of correctness of the application documents formal examination and there is no examination of relative registration capacity of an application, for example the requirement of novelty and individual character.

Litigation procedure with regard to these requirements was left to EUIPO Alicante, in litigation proceedings upon request of the party, which is interested in invalidity of the community design registration.

TRASET Patent Office is authorized to carry out works and represent applicants before the EUIPO Office in Alicante in the field of registration procedures and obtaining protection for the European trademark and Community industrial design.