Industrial Designs
Legal Basis
– Industrial Designs Act (Cap. 309A), in force since January 1, 1985.
Filing and Protection
Applicant: the creator and his successors in title or his assignee.
Delivery of document: the certificate of registration is issued in paper format only.
Duration: ten years.
Extension: possible for further five years.
Number of designs: an application may comprise as many as fifty industrial designs if the products to which the designs relate are of the same kind.
Priority: according to the Paris Convention.
Validity: registration does not give statutory assurance of the validity of the design.
Invalidity: an interested person may apply to the High Court for a declaration of invalidity.
Publication: may be published periodically after registration.
Licensing: permitted; must be registered.
Filing requirements for an application (to be sent to resident agent):
1. Power of attorney – no legalization;
2. Assignment – no legalization;
3. A specimen of the article containing the industrial design, or a graphic representation;
4. An indication of the kind of products to which the industrial design relates.
Electronic filing: not available.
Electronic signatures: are accepted, except for powers of attorney, which require wet signatures.
For a change of name: an original certificate or record issued by the official registry in hard copy (must be notarized).
For a change of address: no document is required.