法律决定

28.10.2021: EuGH rules: Parts of a product can be claimed as a non-registered design

According to the Community Design regulation, it is possible to protect a product design via a so-called unregistered community design for a period of three years from the date on which it was first made available to the public in the territory of the European Union. The process of making a design available to the public is referred to as "disclosure". The extent to which a design has been disclosed and the ability to prove this is therefore critical to design protection.

The above decision thereby answers the question whether the disclosure of a product by means of a photograph can also give rise to design protection for (only) a part of that product. Previously, Ferrari had filed suit for infringement of a non-registered community design after Mansory Design (production and distribution of tuning kits) had made the appearance of another Ferrari model look as similar as the design of the Ferrari FXX K.

The EuGH ruled: Yes, provided that the appearance of this part or component is clearly recognizable in this disclosure.

Practical tipp:

According to the EuGH ruling, the appearance of the individual part must be clearly recognizable and visible in the course of the disclosure. Although there is no obligation to disclose each individual part of the product separately, the parts or components must be located in the visible area of the product and must be clearly outlined by lines, contours, colors, the shape or a particular surface structure.