{"id":25588,"date":"2014-03-27T20:20:53","date_gmt":"2014-03-27T18:20:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kpw-relaunch.wp1.visual4.com\/dienstleistungen\/invalidity-of-designs\/"},"modified":"2026-04-05T19:17:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T17:17:19","slug":"invalidity-of-designs","status":"publish","type":"service","link":"https:\/\/kpw.law\/en\/services\/invalidity-of-designs\/","title":{"rendered":"Invalidity of designs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Nullity<\/p>\n\n\n\n

from <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Designs<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n<\/div> \r\n<\/h1>\n\n\n

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Designs can be judged invalid and canceled due to lack of novelty and individual character or due to formal errors.<\/strong> Our experienced team of design attorneys will represent you in these proceedings before the Office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Contact us now!<\/a><\/div>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n <\/div>\n\n\n
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Call now!<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

Nullity proceedings in design law<\/h2>\n\n

Im Gegensatz zum Markenrecht<\/a>, bei dem Widerspruchs- und Verfallverfahren<\/a> vorgesehen sind, greift im Designrecht <\/a>nur das Nichtigkeitsverfahren \u2013 und zwar nur dann, wenn das betreffende Design die grundlegenden Schutzvoraussetzungen nicht erf\u00fcllt. Im Mittelpunkt stehen dabei insbesondere die Pr\u00fcfung von Neuheit, Eigenart, formaler Richtigkeit sowie die Feststellung der Nichtigkeit.<\/p>\n\n

Cancellation due to lack of novelty<\/h2>\n\n

A design must be new at the time of application in order to obtain effective protection. If it is established that the design was already made available to the public outside the grace period before the application was filed, this constitutes a substantial ground for cancellation. The aim of the procedure is to clarify through careful examination whether novelty actually existed. <\/p>\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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When is a design new?<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Since the reform of design law, the requirement of novelty has been legally defined directly in the Design Act. A design is considered new if no identical design has been disclosed before the filing date. Designs are considered identical if their features differ only in insignificant details. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Specifically, this means: <\/strong>It must not be part of the so-called “body of designs” that is already known prior to the application. A design is deemed to be disclosed if it is presented to the public in such a way that the specialist circles of the relevant industry in the European Union have had the opportunity to take note of it. This can take the form of announcements, exhibitions, commercial use or other means. Even publications outside the European Union – for example at international trade fairs in China or the USA – can affect the novelty of the design. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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The grace period<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The grace period enables the designer of a design to assess its market success. An application for registration of the design can be filed up to one year after its first disclosure by the designer, without this being prevented by the publication of the design. It should be noted, however, that the disclosure can also be triggered by a third party as a result of information or actions by the designer. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n\n

Invalidity due to lack of individual character<\/h2>\n\n

The design must convey an individual overall impression. If this differentiating design is missing, protection is not given. <\/p>\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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When does a design have the necessary individual character?<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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A design has individual character if the overall impression it produces on the informed user differs from the overall impression produced on that user by another design disclosed before the filing date. When assessing individual character, the degree of creative freedom of the designer in developing the design is taken into account. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In concrete terms, this means<\/strong> When assessing the individual character of a design, the overall impression it conveys is taken into account. This must stand out from the overall impression of other designs that were made public before the filing or priority date. A key factor is the designer’s creative freedom: the greater this freedom, the more clearly the design must differ from existing designs. The number of similar designs in the relevant field is also taken into account, as in such cases the requirements for the degree of distinctiveness may tend to be lower. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Degree of design freedom <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The degree of creative freedom of the designer plays a decisive role in the design. This freedom can be limited, for example, if many similar designs already exist in the respective area. If the freedom to design is limited, the requirements for the degree of differentiation can decrease. This means that a design can be considered independent even if it differs only slightly from existing designs. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n\n

Further grounds for nullity<\/h2>\n\n

In addition, there are other grounds for invalidating a design. These include in particular <\/p>\n\n