- Design Protection Act
- CHAPTER I General provisions
- CHAPTER II Application for registration of a design
- CHAPTER III Access to application and information disclosure
- CHAPTER IV Term of protection of a registered design
- CHAPTER V Lapse of a registered design
- CHAPTER VI Appeal
- CHAPTER VII Punishment and liability for compensation, etc.
- CHAPTER VIII Legal procedure
- CHAPTER IX Miscellaneous provisions
- CHAPTER X International Registration of Designs
- CHAPTER XI Entry into force
Design Protection Act
No. 46, 19 May 2001 with amendments according to Acts No. 76/2002, No.
54/2004, No. 108/2006, No. 167/2007 and No. 88/2008.
CHAPTER I
General provisions
Article 1
A designer or his successor in title can, through registration pursuant to this Act, acquire exclusive rights to a design (design rights).
Article 2
For the purposes of this Act the following concepts shall be defined as stated here: - design means the appearance of the whole or a part of a product resulting from its individual features or ornamentation, in particular, its lines, contours, colours, shape, type and/or materials;
- product means any handcrafted or industrial item, including inter alia any part intended to be assembled into a complex product, packaging, get-up, graphic symbols and typographic typefaces, but excluding computer programs;
- complex product means a product which is composed of multiple components which can be replaced permitting disassembly and re-assembly of the product.
Article 3
Design rights can only apply to a new design with an individual character.
A design shall be considered new if no identical design has been made available to the public before the date of filing of the application or, if priority is claimed, the date of priority. A design shall be deemed to be identical to another design if individual features of the design differ only in immaterial details.
A design shall be considered to have individual character if the overall impression it produces on the informed user differs from his overall impression of another design which has been made available to the public before the date of filing of the application or, if priority is claimed, the date of priority. In assessing whether a design has individual character, the degree of freedom of the designer in developing the design shall be taken into consideration.
Article 4
A design of a product, which constitutes part of a complex product, shall only be considered to be new and have individual character: - if the part of it, which has been incorporated into the complex product, remains visible during normal use and
- the visible part fulfils the requirement as to novelty and individual character.
Normal use shall mean utilisation by the end user of the complex product, excluding maintenance, servicing or repair work.
Article 5
A design shall be deemed to have been made available to the public in accordance with this Act if it has been registered or otherwise made public, or exhibited, used in trade or otherwise disclosed.
The design shall not be deemed to have been made available to the public: - where the events of the first paragraph could not reasonably have become known in the normal course of business to the circles specialised in the sector concerned, operating within the European Economic Area (EEA), before the date of filing of the application or, if priority is claimed, the date of priority, or
- if knowledge of the design has been disclosed to others under explicit or implicit conditions of confidentiality.
Article 6
A design shall not be deemed to have been made available to the public if it has, during the 12-month period preceding the date of filing of the application or, if priority is claimed, the date of priority, been made available to the public: - by the designer, his successor in title, or a third person as a result of information provided or action taken by the designer, or his successor in title; or
- as a consequence of an abuse in relation to the designer or his successor in title.
Article 7
A design shall not enjoy protection if it or its use: - is contrary to accepted principles of morality or public order,
- constitutes unauthorised use of indications protected under Article 6 of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property of 20 March 1883, or of other badges, emblems and escutcheons which are of particular public interest,
- constitutes an unauthorised use of a trade mark or the name of an active commercial activity of another party,
- constitutes unauthorised use of a work protected under the copyright law,
- violates a design which is already protected by an application for or registration of design rights in this country or pursuant to international registration which applies in this country.
Article 8
A design right shall not include features of appearance of a product which: - are solely dictated by its technical function, or
- must necessarily be produced in their exact form and dimensions in order to permit the product in which the design is incorporated to be mechanically connected to or placed in, around or against another product so that both products may perform their functions.
Notwithstanding the provisions of Point 2 of paragraph 1, a design right may be acquired if the design is new and of individual character pursuant to Article 3 and allows multiple assembly or connection of mutually interchangeable products within a modular system.
Article 9
Design rights shall mean that no party except the designer may exploit the design without authorisation, cf. however the exceptions in Articles 10 to 12. For example, the unauthorised making, offering, putting on the market, importing, exporting or using of a product which is characterised by the design is prohibited, as well as stocking such a product for those purposes.
The design rights provided for in paragraph 1 shall include any design which does not produce on the informed user a different overall impression.
Article 10
Design rights shall not include: - acts done for private purposes,
- acts done for experimental purposes, and
3. reproduction for use in citations or education provided that such acts are compatible with fair trade practices, do not unduly prejudice the normal exploitation of the design, and that mention is made of the source.
Article 11
Furthermore, the design rights shall not cover: - equipment on ships and aircraft registered in another country when these are temporarily located under Icelandic jurisdiction;
- the importation to Iceland of spare parts and accessories for the purpose of repairing ships and aircraft as referred to in Point 1; and
- execution of repairs on ships and aircraft as referred to in Points 1 and 2.
Article 12
Design rights shall not extend to acts relating to a product which enjoys protection if the product has been put on the market in the European Economic Area by the proprietor of the design right or with his consent.
CHAPTER II
Application for registration of a design
Article 13
Application for registration of a design shall be submitted to the Icelandic Patent Office which maintains the Registry of Designs.
An application must include information on the name of the applicant and specification of the product or products covered by the design.
An application must be accompanied by illustrations (graphic or photographic reproductions) which show clearly the design for which protection is sought. In addition, a model may be submitted with the application.
The name of the designer or designers shall be specified in the application. If the applicant is not the designer, he shall prove his right to the design.
The application must be accompanied by the prescribed fee, cf. Article 53.
Article 14
An application for registration of a design shall not be deemed to have been filed until an applicant has submitted illustrations depicting the design, specified the product which the design covers and paid the prescribed fee, cf. Article 53.
An application may not be altered to refer to another design than that which is described in the application.
Article 15
A single application may be made for protection for one or more designs if the products connected with the designs form a set or belong to the same classification under the Locarno Agreement of 8 October 1968 on international classification of designs.
More detailed provisions on such multiple registration shall be prescribed in a Regulation.
Article 16
If application has been made for registration of a design in another application for a design or utility patent in Iceland or in another state, which is a member of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property of 20 March 1883 or of the World Trade Organisation, within six months of the date of filing in the first country, the later application shall be considered to have been made at the same time as the previous application, provided that the applicant submits such request.
The provisions of paragraph 1 shall also apply in the case of a state which is not a member of the Paris Convention or the World Trade Organization if that state recognises the corresponding priority claim of Icelandic applications and its laws are generally in accordance with the Paris Convention.
If application is made for the registration of a design within six months from the date the design is first exhibited at a public or publicly recognised international exhibition the application shall be deemed to have been filed at that time. International exhibitions shall mean exhibitions in accordance with the agreement on world expositions signed in Paris on 22 November 1928.
Article 17
In addition to formal requirements, the Patent Office shall determine whether an application refers to a design in the understanding of point 1 of Article 2 and is in accordance with Points 1 and 2 of Article 7.
An applicant may request that the Patent Office also examine whether the application fulfils the requirements of Points 3 and 5 of Article 7 and is in other respects in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
A request for an examination in accordance with paragraph 2 must be accompanied by the prescribed fee, cf. Article 53.
Article 18
If an application is deemed to fulfil the prescribed rules it shall be registered. The Patent Office shall classify the design in accordance with the provisions of the Locarno Agreement of 8 October 1968 on the international classification of designs. A notification of the registration of the design shall be published in the Patent Gazette issued by the Patent Office.
[The Gazette may be published and distributed electronically, for example on the Internet.] 1)
At the request of an applicant, however, registration may be deferred for up to six months from the date of filing or priority date where priority is claimed. A request for deferment must be made in the application.1) Act No. 54/2004, Art. 1 (Valid from June 14 2004).
Article 19
If an application for registration of a design is not in accordance with the provisions of laws or regulations, or if the Patent Office deems that as a result of other obstacles registration should be refused, an applicant shall be notified thereof and given the opportunity to express comments or correct the application within a prescribed time limit.
If an applicant fails to express his comments or correct the application within the prescribed time limit, the application shall be dismissed.
At the request of an applicant, an application shall be examined once again if, within two months of the expiry of the prescribed time limit, he expresses comments on the case or corrects the application, provided he pays the fee for re-opening an application, cf. Article 53. Re-opening an application may only occur once.
If the Patent Office deems there to be anything to prevent the approval of an application, and the applicant has been given the opportunity to express comments on the deficiency, the application shall be refused unless the Patent Office deems there to be reason to give the applicant once more the opportunity of the procedure referred to in the first paragraph.
Article 20
If the Icelandic Patent Office deems there to be anything to prevent registration, cf. Article 19, the design may be registered in an altered form if it fulfils the requirements for protection and retains its individual character.
If an applicant does not agree to the altered form the application shall be refused.
CHAPTER III
Access to application and information disclosure
Article 21
From the date of registration of a design the application documentation shall be made accessible to the public.
After six months have elapsed from the date of filing or priority date where priority is claimed, the documentation shall be made accessible to the public even if publication as provided for in Article 18 has not yet taken place. If a decision has been taken to dismiss or refuse an application, however, the application documentation may not be made accessible unless an applicant request its re-opening or appeals against a decision on refusal.
If an applicant so requests the application documentation shall be made accessible earlier than provided for in paragraphs 1 and 2.
When application documentation becomes accessible as provided for in paragraphs 2 and 3 an advertisement to this effect shall be published.
Article 22
If an applicant for registration of a design makes claims to others based on his application before it is made accessible to the public, he must grant the party concerned access to the application documentation if such is requested.
If a person indicates by directly approaching another party, in an advertisement, by an inscription on a product or its packaging, or by other means, that application for registration of a design has been made or that it has been registered, without specifying at the same time the number of the application or registration, he must provide anyone so requesting with this information without undue delay. If information is such as to suggest that application for registration of a design has been made or it has been registered, without this being explicitly stated, information as to whether this is the case must be provided without undue delay upon request.
CHAPTER IV
Term of protection of a registered design
Article 23
A registered design shall be valid for one or more five-year periods from the date of filing. Registration may be renewed for five years at a time until a 25-year term of protection is reached.
Article 24
A request for renewal of registration, together with the prescribed renewal fee, as referred to in Article 53, shall be submitted to the Patent Office no earlier than three months before the period of registration ends and at the latest six months after its conclusion.
Should the Patent Office fail to receive a request for renewal during the period referred to in the first paragraph, the registration shall be eradicated from the Registry of Designs.
If a request is not in accordance with the provisions of laws or regulations the Patent Office shall inform the person concerned and give him an opportunity to express comments within a prescribed time limit.
Following the expiry of this period the Patent Office shall make a decision on the request, unless the person concerned is given the opportunity to express comments once more.
Notification of the renewal of registration shall be published in the Patent Gazette.
CHAPTER V
Lapse of a registered design
Article 25
Registration of a design may be invalidated in whole or in part by a court decision if: - registration is not in accordance with the provisions of Articles 1-8, or
- an application has been altered in such a way that it violates the provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 14.
Anyone may initiate proceedings in accordance with the paragraph 1 but in the following cases, however, only: - concerning the right to a design: a party claiming to be the legal owner of the design;
- concerning rights pursuant to Point 2 of Article 7: a party with interests at stake regarding the usage concerned;
- concerning rights pursuant to Points 3 to 5 of Article 7: the proprietor of those rights.
Legal proceedings as referred to in Point 1 of paragraph 2 must be initiated within one year from the date the party concerned became aware of the registration and of other circumstances upon which the case is based. Proceedings may not, however, be initiated more than three months after the registration of a design if the registration proprietor was acting in good faith when the design was registered or the person concerned acquired design rights.
Registration of a design may be cancelled after design rights have lapsed or have been surrendered.
Article 26
If a design has been registered to another owner than the person who, in accordance with Article 1, is entitled to design rights, a court shall, at the demand of the proprietor, transfer the right to the latter.
If a person whose design rights have been revoked in this manner has, in good faith, exploited the new design commercially in Iceland, or made extensive preparations to do so, he may, in return for fair remuneration and in other respects on fair terms, continue this exploitation or commence the planned exploitation provided such exploitation is not altered substantially. On the same premises, a registered licensee shall have the same right.
Rights as provided for in paragraph 2 may only be transferred together with the industrial operations where the right has been exploited or was to be exploited.
Article 27
After a design has been registered a request may be submitted to the Patent Office to cancel the registration in whole or in part, provided the prescribed fee is paid, cf. Article 53. A request may only be based upon the following: - that registration is not in accordance with the provisions of Articles 1-8 or
- an application has been altered in such a way that it violates the provisions of the second paragraph of Article 14.
A request as provided for in paragraph 1 may only be submitted by the following parties: - concerning the right to a design: a party claiming to be the legal owner of the design;
- concerning rights pursuant to point 2 of Article 7: a party with interests at stake regarding the usage concerned;
3. concerning rights pursuant to points 3 to 5 of Article 7: the proprietor of those rights. If the owner of design rights has waived those rights, the Patent Office shall eradicate the registration of the design.
If a request as provided for in paragraph 1 is revoked, the Patent Office may continue the process insofar as the office deems there to be reason for so doing.
Article 28
A request as provided for in paragraph 1 of Article 27 must be made in writing and grounds provided. If documentation is insufficient the Patent Office may request further documentation in order to be able to reach a conclusion on the request.
If a request is submitted as provided for in paragraph 1 of Article 27, the owner of a registered design shall be informed thereof and given an opportunity to express his comments.
Article 29
If a design, which is based on right of priority in accordance with Article 16, has been registered after a comparable design has been registered, the owner of the registered design shall be notified thereof and be given the opportunity to express comments thereupon. The Patent Office may partially or fully invalidate the earlier registration.
The provisions of paragraph 1 shall also apply when the Patent Office receives notice requesting that an international registration apply in this country. In such case it must be clear that the international registration has become valid in Iceland, cf.
paragraph 1 of Article 57, before application was made for registration of the design already registered.
Article 30
If anything prevents a design registration from maintaining its validity as the result of a court verdict or a decision by the Patent Office following a request as referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 27, the registration shall be cancelled. When the final verdict or decision has been delivered, the Patent Office shall publish a notice to this effect.
If the Patent Office deems that a request as referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 27 should not result in the partial or full cancellation of a registration, the request shall be refused and the registration remain unchanged.
Article 31
On the basis of a court verdict or decision resulting from a request as referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 27, the registration may be maintained in an altered form if the design in such form fulfils the requirements for protection and maintains its individual character.
The Patent Office shall publish a notification of the registration in altered form.
If the owner of design rights does not agree with a decision by the Patent Office in the wake of a request as referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 27, for registration of a design in an altered form, the design registration shall be cancelled.
Article 32
If legal proceedings have been instigated for the invalidation of the registration of a design as provided for in Article 25, a request as referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 27 may not be submitted concerning the design which is the subject of the court case.
If legal proceedings have been instigated following the submission of a request as referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 27, the Patent Office shall postpone its handling of the request until the court case is finally concluded, unless the request has been made by the proprietor of the design rights.
Article 33
If any person contends to the Patent Office that he is the proprietor of a design application or registration and not the applicant for or registered proprietor of the design rights, the Patent Office may, if it deems there to be grounds for doubt, instruct the person concerned to initiate legal proceedings to confirm his claim within a prescribed time limit. If the person concerned fails to comply with these instructions the Patent Office may disregard his contention. This shall also be stated in the instructions.
If legal proceedings are instigated concerning the right to a design, the Patent Office may postpone further processing until the case is finally concluded.
Article 34
If anyone provides evidence that he and not the applicant for or registered proprietor of the design rights is entitled to the design, the Patent Office shall register the design in his name, provided the person concerned has so requested. Anyone who has an application or registration transferred to his name in this manner shall pay the application fee again, cf. Article 53.
Should a request for the transfer of an application or registration be submitted, the application or registration shall remain unaltered until a final decision has been reached concerning the request.
CHAPTER VI
Appeal
Article 35
An applicant for or proprietor of design rights may refer a final decision by the Patent Office to the Board of Appeal on industrial property rights. Anyone who has submitted a request that the registration of a design be cancelled may refer to the Board of Appeal a decision that the registration shall remain in altered or unaltered form. If an appeal is withdrawn, the Board of Appeal may, nevertheless proceed to a decision on the question where special circumstances so warrant.
Article 36
An appeal must be received by the [Ministry of Business Affairs]1) within two months of the time the party concerned was notified of a decision. The appeal fee shall be paid to the Ministry within the same time limit. The appeal fee shall be set as a maximum for the cost or partial cost of the Board of appeal on industrial property rights, for instance, remuneration to committee members in individual cases, postal fees, reproduction costs and other administrative costs arising from the Board’s work. If the appeal fee is not paid within the prescribed time limit the appeal shall be dismissed. An appeal shall suspend further processing of a case by the Patent Office.
54/2004, No. 108/2006, No. 167/2007 and No. 88/2008.
CHAPTER I
General provisions
Article 1
A designer or his successor in title can, through registration pursuant to this Act, acquire exclusive rights to a design (design rights).
For the purposes of this Act the following concepts shall be defined as stated here: Design rights can only apply to a new design with an individual character.
A design shall be considered new if no identical design has been made available to the public before the date of filing of the application or, if priority is claimed, the date of priority. A design shall be deemed to be identical to another design if individual features of the design differ only in immaterial details.
A design shall be considered to have individual character if the overall impression it produces on the informed user differs from his overall impression of another design which has been made available to the public before the date of filing of the application or, if priority is claimed, the date of priority. In assessing whether a design has individual character, the degree of freedom of the designer in developing the design shall be taken into consideration.
A design of a product, which constitutes part of a complex product, shall only be considered to be new and have individual character: Normal use shall mean utilisation by the end user of the complex product, excluding maintenance, servicing or repair work.
A design shall be deemed to have been made available to the public in accordance with this Act if it has been registered or otherwise made public, or exhibited, used in trade or otherwise disclosed.
The design shall not be deemed to have been made available to the public: A design shall not be deemed to have been made available to the public if it has, during the 12-month period preceding the date of filing of the application or, if priority is claimed, the date of priority, been made available to the public: A design shall not enjoy protection if it or its use: Article 8
A design right shall not include features of appearance of a product which: Notwithstanding the provisions of Point 2 of paragraph 1, a design right may be acquired if the design is new and of individual character pursuant to Article 3 and allows multiple assembly or connection of mutually interchangeable products within a modular system.
Article 9
Design rights shall mean that no party except the designer may exploit the design without authorisation, cf. however the exceptions in Articles 10 to 12. For example, the unauthorised making, offering, putting on the market, importing, exporting or using of a product which is characterised by the design is prohibited, as well as stocking such a product for those purposes.
The design rights provided for in paragraph 1 shall include any design which does not produce on the informed user a different overall impression.
Article 10
Design rights shall not include: 3. reproduction for use in citations or education provided that such acts are compatible with fair trade practices, do not unduly prejudice the normal exploitation of the design, and that mention is made of the source.
Article 11
Furthermore, the design rights shall not cover: Article 12
Design rights shall not extend to acts relating to a product which enjoys protection if the product has been put on the market in the European Economic Area by the proprietor of the design right or with his consent.
Application for registration of a design shall be submitted to the Icelandic Patent Office which maintains the Registry of Designs.
An application must include information on the name of the applicant and specification of the product or products covered by the design.
An application must be accompanied by illustrations (graphic or photographic reproductions) which show clearly the design for which protection is sought. In addition, a model may be submitted with the application.
The name of the designer or designers shall be specified in the application. If the applicant is not the designer, he shall prove his right to the design.
The application must be accompanied by the prescribed fee, cf. Article 53.
An application for registration of a design shall not be deemed to have been filed until an applicant has submitted illustrations depicting the design, specified the product which the design covers and paid the prescribed fee, cf. Article 53.
An application may not be altered to refer to another design than that which is described in the application.
Article 15
A single application may be made for protection for one or more designs if the products connected with the designs form a set or belong to the same classification under the Locarno Agreement of 8 October 1968 on international classification of designs.
More detailed provisions on such multiple registration shall be prescribed in a Regulation.
If application has been made for registration of a design in another application for a design or utility patent in Iceland or in another state, which is a member of the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property of 20 March 1883 or of the World Trade Organisation, within six months of the date of filing in the first country, the later application shall be considered to have been made at the same time as the previous application, provided that the applicant submits such request.
The provisions of paragraph 1 shall also apply in the case of a state which is not a member of the Paris Convention or the World Trade Organization if that state recognises the corresponding priority claim of Icelandic applications and its laws are generally in accordance with the Paris Convention.
If application is made for the registration of a design within six months from the date the design is first exhibited at a public or publicly recognised international exhibition the application shall be deemed to have been filed at that time. International exhibitions shall mean exhibitions in accordance with the agreement on world expositions signed in Paris on 22 November 1928.
Article 17
In addition to formal requirements, the Patent Office shall determine whether an application refers to a design in the understanding of point 1 of Article 2 and is in accordance with Points 1 and 2 of Article 7.
An applicant may request that the Patent Office also examine whether the application fulfils the requirements of Points 3 and 5 of Article 7 and is in other respects in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
A request for an examination in accordance with paragraph 2 must be accompanied by the prescribed fee, cf. Article 53.
If an application is deemed to fulfil the prescribed rules it shall be registered. The Patent Office shall classify the design in accordance with the provisions of the Locarno Agreement of 8 October 1968 on the international classification of designs. A notification of the registration of the design shall be published in the Patent Gazette issued by the Patent Office.
[The Gazette may be published and distributed electronically, for example on the Internet.] 1)
At the request of an applicant, however, registration may be deferred for up to six months from the date of filing or priority date where priority is claimed. A request for deferment must be made in the application.1) Act No. 54/2004, Art. 1 (Valid from June 14 2004).
If an application for registration of a design is not in accordance with the provisions of laws or regulations, or if the Patent Office deems that as a result of other obstacles registration should be refused, an applicant shall be notified thereof and given the opportunity to express comments or correct the application within a prescribed time limit.
If an applicant fails to express his comments or correct the application within the prescribed time limit, the application shall be dismissed.
At the request of an applicant, an application shall be examined once again if, within two months of the expiry of the prescribed time limit, he expresses comments on the case or corrects the application, provided he pays the fee for re-opening an application, cf. Article 53. Re-opening an application may only occur once.
If the Patent Office deems there to be anything to prevent the approval of an application, and the applicant has been given the opportunity to express comments on the deficiency, the application shall be refused unless the Patent Office deems there to be reason to give the applicant once more the opportunity of the procedure referred to in the first paragraph.
Article 20
If the Icelandic Patent Office deems there to be anything to prevent registration, cf. Article 19, the design may be registered in an altered form if it fulfils the requirements for protection and retains its individual character.
If an applicant does not agree to the altered form the application shall be refused.
CHAPTER III From the date of registration of a design the application documentation shall be made accessible to the public.
After six months have elapsed from the date of filing or priority date where priority is claimed, the documentation shall be made accessible to the public even if publication as provided for in Article 18 has not yet taken place. If a decision has been taken to dismiss or refuse an application, however, the application documentation may not be made accessible unless an applicant request its re-opening or appeals against a decision on refusal.
If an applicant so requests the application documentation shall be made accessible earlier than provided for in paragraphs 1 and 2.
When application documentation becomes accessible as provided for in paragraphs 2 and 3 an advertisement to this effect shall be published.
If an applicant for registration of a design makes claims to others based on his application before it is made accessible to the public, he must grant the party concerned access to the application documentation if such is requested.
If a person indicates by directly approaching another party, in an advertisement, by an inscription on a product or its packaging, or by other means, that application for registration of a design has been made or that it has been registered, without specifying at the same time the number of the application or registration, he must provide anyone so requesting with this information without undue delay. If information is such as to suggest that application for registration of a design has been made or it has been registered, without this being explicitly stated, information as to whether this is the case must be provided without undue delay upon request.
CHAPTER IV A registered design shall be valid for one or more five-year periods from the date of filing. Registration may be renewed for five years at a time until a 25-year term of protection is reached.
A request for renewal of registration, together with the prescribed renewal fee, as referred to in Article 53, shall be submitted to the Patent Office no earlier than three months before the period of registration ends and at the latest six months after its conclusion.
Should the Patent Office fail to receive a request for renewal during the period referred to in the first paragraph, the registration shall be eradicated from the Registry of Designs.
If a request is not in accordance with the provisions of laws or regulations the Patent Office shall inform the person concerned and give him an opportunity to express comments within a prescribed time limit.
Following the expiry of this period the Patent Office shall make a decision on the request, unless the person concerned is given the opportunity to express comments once more.
Notification of the renewal of registration shall be published in the Patent Gazette.
Registration of a design may be invalidated in whole or in part by a court decision if: Anyone may initiate proceedings in accordance with the paragraph 1 but in the following cases, however, only: Legal proceedings as referred to in Point 1 of paragraph 2 must be initiated within one year from the date the party concerned became aware of the registration and of other circumstances upon which the case is based. Proceedings may not, however, be initiated more than three months after the registration of a design if the registration proprietor was acting in good faith when the design was registered or the person concerned acquired design rights.
Registration of a design may be cancelled after design rights have lapsed or have been surrendered.
Article 26
If a design has been registered to another owner than the person who, in accordance with Article 1, is entitled to design rights, a court shall, at the demand of the proprietor, transfer the right to the latter.
If a person whose design rights have been revoked in this manner has, in good faith, exploited the new design commercially in Iceland, or made extensive preparations to do so, he may, in return for fair remuneration and in other respects on fair terms, continue this exploitation or commence the planned exploitation provided such exploitation is not altered substantially. On the same premises, a registered licensee shall have the same right.
Rights as provided for in paragraph 2 may only be transferred together with the industrial operations where the right has been exploited or was to be exploited.
After a design has been registered a request may be submitted to the Patent Office to cancel the registration in whole or in part, provided the prescribed fee is paid, cf. Article 53. A request may only be based upon the following: A request as provided for in paragraph 1 may only be submitted by the following parties: 3. concerning rights pursuant to points 3 to 5 of Article 7: the proprietor of those rights. If the owner of design rights has waived those rights, the Patent Office shall eradicate the registration of the design.
If a request as provided for in paragraph 1 is revoked, the Patent Office may continue the process insofar as the office deems there to be reason for so doing.
Article 28
A request as provided for in paragraph 1 of Article 27 must be made in writing and grounds provided. If documentation is insufficient the Patent Office may request further documentation in order to be able to reach a conclusion on the request.
If a request is submitted as provided for in paragraph 1 of Article 27, the owner of a registered design shall be informed thereof and given an opportunity to express his comments.
Article 29
If a design, which is based on right of priority in accordance with Article 16, has been registered after a comparable design has been registered, the owner of the registered design shall be notified thereof and be given the opportunity to express comments thereupon. The Patent Office may partially or fully invalidate the earlier registration.
The provisions of paragraph 1 shall also apply when the Patent Office receives notice requesting that an international registration apply in this country. In such case it must be clear that the international registration has become valid in Iceland, cf.
paragraph 1 of Article 57, before application was made for registration of the design already registered.
Article 30
If anything prevents a design registration from maintaining its validity as the result of a court verdict or a decision by the Patent Office following a request as referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 27, the registration shall be cancelled. When the final verdict or decision has been delivered, the Patent Office shall publish a notice to this effect.
If the Patent Office deems that a request as referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 27 should not result in the partial or full cancellation of a registration, the request shall be refused and the registration remain unchanged.
Article 31
On the basis of a court verdict or decision resulting from a request as referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 27, the registration may be maintained in an altered form if the design in such form fulfils the requirements for protection and maintains its individual character.
The Patent Office shall publish a notification of the registration in altered form.
If the owner of design rights does not agree with a decision by the Patent Office in the wake of a request as referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 27, for registration of a design in an altered form, the design registration shall be cancelled.
Article 32
If legal proceedings have been instigated for the invalidation of the registration of a design as provided for in Article 25, a request as referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 27 may not be submitted concerning the design which is the subject of the court case.
If legal proceedings have been instigated following the submission of a request as referred to in paragraph 1 of Article 27, the Patent Office shall postpone its handling of the request until the court case is finally concluded, unless the request has been made by the proprietor of the design rights.
Article 33
If any person contends to the Patent Office that he is the proprietor of a design application or registration and not the applicant for or registered proprietor of the design rights, the Patent Office may, if it deems there to be grounds for doubt, instruct the person concerned to initiate legal proceedings to confirm his claim within a prescribed time limit. If the person concerned fails to comply with these instructions the Patent Office may disregard his contention. This shall also be stated in the instructions.
If legal proceedings are instigated concerning the right to a design, the Patent Office may postpone further processing until the case is finally concluded.
Article 34
If anyone provides evidence that he and not the applicant for or registered proprietor of the design rights is entitled to the design, the Patent Office shall register the design in his name, provided the person concerned has so requested. Anyone who has an application or registration transferred to his name in this manner shall pay the application fee again, cf. Article 53.
Should a request for the transfer of an application or registration be submitted, the application or registration shall remain unaltered until a final decision has been reached concerning the request.
An applicant for or proprietor of design rights may refer a final decision by the Patent Office to the Board of Appeal on industrial property rights. Anyone who has submitted a request that the registration of a design be cancelled may refer to the Board of Appeal a decision that the registration shall remain in altered or unaltered form. If an appeal is withdrawn, the Board of Appeal may, nevertheless proceed to a decision on the question where special circumstances so warrant.
An appeal must be received by the [Ministry of Business Affairs]1) within two months of the time the party concerned was notified of a decision. The appeal fee shall be paid to the Ministry within the same time limit. The appeal fee shall be set as a maximum for the cost or partial cost of the Board of appeal on industrial property rights, for instance, remuneration to committee members in individual cases, postal fees, reproduction costs and other administrative costs arising from the Board’s work. If the appeal fee is not paid within the prescribed time limit the appeal shall be dismissed. An appeal shall suspend further processing of a case by the Patent Office.
Article 2
Article 3
Article 4
Article 5
Article 6
Article 7
CHAPTER II
Application for registration of a design
Article 13
Article 14
Article 16
Article 18
Article 19
Access to application and information disclosure
Article 21
Article 22
Term of protection of a registered design
Article 23
Article 24
CHAPTER V
Lapse of a registered design
Article 25
Article 27
CHAPTER VI
Appeal
Article 35
Article 36