FAQs

A design is a form of protection for an industrial product. It covers the product’s appearance or salient elements of the product, distinguishing it from similar products. It is a relatively inexpensive form of protection but is limited since any significant aesthetic changes in a product will result in one that is not covered by the previous design.

Designs are a very efficient way to avoid competition when your product has an aesthetic component that appeals to the consumer and helps the consumer distinguish it from competing products. Some designs become so popular that they dictate the consumer’s behavior and result in significant business advantages.

Designs can be protected by filing an application to register the specific design, which consists of images showing the particular elements believed to be novel and significant.

A design provides protection for its owner such that any unauthorized use of what is protected by a registered design constitutes infringement. Manufacturers of infringing products may be stopped by petitioning the court for an interlocutory injunction and then a final one, and damages may be recovered from an infringer for past infringements.

Designs, patents, and trademarks are different types of IP protection. While a design protects the appearance of a product, a patent protects its technical character, the way in which it is manufactured or used, and any other technical aspect of the product that is of no relevance as far as design protection is concerned. Trademarks protect words and symbols, such as logos, that help the consumer differentiate between products originating from a specific manufacturer from others’ products and may cover various products.

The basic documentation needed for filing a design application consists of good and representative drawings of the product. These should be figures showing the actual product to be marketed, not a conceptual idea of the product, since visual details have great importance in determining a design protection scope.

Applications for design registration are published as soon as possible after filing. It is possible to petition the Registrar of Designs for postponement of the publication, but the postponement cannot be later than six months from the filing date of the application.

Designs can be searched in the appropriate database in Israel and in professional databases for other countries. Because of their very nature involving shapes, however, the ability to locate relevant designs is somewhat limited.

Unregistered designs enjoy limited protection in Israel for three years. However, an unregistered design does not enjoy the presumption of validity given by a certificate of registration of a design and may meet more difficulties in enforcing rights.

A Registered Design is valid in Israel for 25 years, provided all renewals have been timely paid.

An attorney will help you define the scope of your design in the most appropriate way, will review the drawings and suggest appropriate changes, and will smoothen the way to registration by avoiding common pitfalls. Moreover, if you plan to file your application abroad, the assistance of an attorney will be beneficial to navigate the complexities of foreign and international systems.

If your design was published by you, it can still be protected by filing an application for registration within 12 months from its publication. If the design was published by somebody else, only the owner may file an application for registration.

Functional designs are not eligible for registration, and if registered by mistake, are open to cancellation. Accordingly, there is no point in filing an application to register a functional design.