- Chapter 1 General Provisions
- Chapter 2 The Application for Registration and the Processing thereof
- Chapter 3 Period of Validity of the Design Registration
- Chapter 4 Licences, Assignments, etc.
- Chapter 5 Termination of the Registration, etc
- Chapter 6 Duty of Disclosure
- Chapter 7 Provisions concerning Legal Protection, etc.
- Chapter 8 Provisions concerning Legal Proceedings
- Chapter 9 Miscellaneous Provisions
- Chapter 10 Provisions for Entry into Force and Transitional Provisions
Designs Act * (Act No. 33 of May 29, 1970, as last amended by Act No. 104 of December 20, 1996)
TABLE OF CONTENTS **
Everything that has become available to the public—as a result of reproduction, exhibition, offering for sale or in any other way is deemed to be known. Furthermore, a
* Norwegian title: Lov om mønster. design that is not available to the public is also deemed to be known if the design is evident from an application in this country for patent or for registration of a trademark or design, where such application has been—or pursuant to the relevant provisions is deemed to have been—filed prior to the date referred to in the first paragraph , provided that the design is subsequently made available to the public in connection with the application procedure.
Sec. 3. A design may be registered notwithstanding the fact that during the six months immediately prior to the filing of the application it has become available to the public Sec. 5. Subject to the exceptions laid down in this Act, the right to a design implies that no one other than the holder of the design right (the design right holder) may without authorisation make use of the design for the purposes of a trade or business by manufacturing, importing into the country, offering for sale, transferring or leasing goods, the appearance of which does not differ essentially from the design or which includes something that does not differ essentially therefrom.
The design right relates only to articles identical with or similar to the article for which the design has been registered.
The use of design protected goods which have been put on sale within the European Economic Area by the design right holder or with his consent is excepted from the design right.
Sec. 6. Anyone using the design for the purposes of a trade or business in this country at the time the application for registration of the design was filed may, notwithstanding the design right, continue such use whilst retaining its general character, provided that such use did not entail a manifest abuse with respect to the applicant or the person from whom he derives title. Under similar conditions, any person who had made substantial preparations to use the design for the purposes of a trade or business in this country shall have the same right of use.
The right referred to in the first paragraph may only be transferred together with the business in which it has arisen or in which the use was intended to take place.
Sec. 7. The King may decree that, notwithstanding a design right, spare parts and accessories for aircraft may be imported into this country in order to be used for the repair of aircraft belonging to a foreign country which concedes similar rights with respect to Norwegian aircraft.
Sec. 8. The King may decree that an application for the registration of a design for which protection has been sought outside this country prior to the filing date shall, in relation to the provisions in sections 2 and 6 , be deemed upon request to have been filed at the same time as the application outside this country.
The King shall specify the actual conditions under which a right of priority as referred to herein may be asserted.
Sec. 9. The registering authority is Styret for det industrielle rettsvern (the Patent Office).
Sec. 10. Applications for the registration of a design shall be filed in writing with the Patent Office.
The application shall contain information concerning the article for which registration of the design is sought. The author of the design shall be named in the application. If registration is sought by someone other than the author of the design, the applicant shall document his right to the design.
The application shall be accompanied by a picture showing the design. If, before the design is registered, the applicant also submits a model, this model shall be deemed to show the design. Furthermore, the application shall be accompanied by a declaration signed by the applicant to the effect that to his knowledge the design was not known prior to the date on which the application was filed or is deemed to have been filed, cf.
section 8 , in any manner that according to section 2 , cf. section 3 , would preclude registration of the design.
The applicant shall pay the prescribed application fee and additional fees, cf. section 48 .
Sec. 11. An application may include more than one design if the articles for which registration of the designs has been sought are interrelated with respect to manufacture and use. An application for such multiple registration may comprise at most 20 designs and may not relate to ornaments.
Sec. 12. Any applicant who is not resident in this country shall have a representative domiciled in this country to represent him in all matters concerning the application.
Sec. 13. An application for the registration of a design shall not be deemed to have been filed until the applicant has submitted a picture or model showing the design. An application may not be altered so as to relate to a design or an article other than the design or article disclosed in the application.
Sec. 14. When examining the application for registration of a design, the Patent Office shall, to the extent determined by the King, establish whether the conditions for registration of the design have been fulfilled. If the applicant has not complied with the requirements prescribed, or if the Patent Office has other objections to the registration, the applicant shall be notified thereof and invited to submit his observations or make amendments within a specified time limit.
If the applicant fails within the specified time limit to submit his observations or to take steps to remedy a defect to which his attention has been drawn, the application shall be shelved. Advice of this consequence shall be included in the Patent Office’s notification according to the first paragraph .
However, the processing of the application shall be resumed if, within two months after the expiration of the said time limit, the applicant submits a statement or takes steps to amend the application and, within the same time limit, pays a prescribed resumption fee. Resumption may be requested only once.
Sec. 15. If, after the receipt of the applicant’s reply, the Patent Office still finds any objection to the registration, and the applicant has had an opportunity to comment upon the objection, the application shall be refused unless the Patent Office finds grounds for further correspondence with the applicant.
Sec. 16. If anyone claims before the Patent Office that he and not the applicant has the right to a design, the Patent Office may, if the matter is found questionable, request the person concerned to institute legal proceedings within a specified time limit to have the matter tried in a court of law, whilst informing him that if he does not comply with the request, his claim may be disregarded during the continued processing of the application.
If the question of the right to the design is under litigation, the processing of the application for registration may be suspended pending the court’s final decision.
Sec. 17. If anyone proves to the satisfaction of the Patent Office that he and not the applicant is entitled to the design, the Patent Office shall transfer the application to him if he so requests. The transferee shall pay a new application fee.
If a request for transfer of an application has been made, the application must not be altered, shelved, refused or accepted until the request for transfer has been finally settled.
Sec. 18. If the application is in the prescribed form and no objection has been found to the registration, the design shall be registered. Upon the applicant’s request, the registration may however be deferred for a period of up to six months from the filing date of the application, or if priority as referred to in section 8 is claimed, from the date from which priority is claimed. Request for deferment shall be made on the application form.
When a design is registered, notice thereof shall be published.
Sec. 19. If the applicant has not requested deferment of the registration pursuant to section 18 , all the documents in the application shall be made available to the public from the filing date of the application.
If deferment has been requested, the documents shall be made available to the public at the end of the deferment period even though registration pursuant to section 18 will not yet take place. However, if at this time the application is shelved or refused, the documents shall not be made available unless the applicant requests resumption of proceedings or files an appeal against the decision.
Proposals, drafts, reports and other similar working papers that the Patent Office prepares in connection with the processing of an application shall not be made available unless the Patent Office decides otherwise.
Sec. 20. Any person may file an opposition to the registration of a design. A notice of opposition shall be presented in writing, shall state the grounds for opposition and shall be filed with the Patent Office within four months from the date on which notice of registration was published. In special cases, the Patent Office may upon request grant the opponent a short additional time limit in which to provide further documentation in support of the opposition.
An opposition founded on the claim that the design has been registered for someone other than the person who according to section 1 is entitled to obtain registration, may only be put forward by the person claiming to have the right to the design. The opposition may include a request to have the registration transferred to the opponent.
The Patent Office shall dismiss an opposition which does not fulfil the conditions in the first and second paragraphs .
The Patent Office shall notify the design right holder of any oppositions and shall give him an opportunity to submit his observations thereon. Section 12 applies correspondingly to the design right holder during the opposition proceedings.
If an opposition to the registration of a design is filed, this shall be entered in the Register of Designs and notice thereof published.
Even if the opposition is withdrawn, the opposition proceedings may continue if special circumstances so indicate.
Sec. 21. Following an opposition the Patent Office shall cancel the registration of a design wholly or partly if the design has been registered in contravention of sections 1 to 4 , and the obstacle to registration subsists.
If the opponent claims he is entitled to a design registration and in the opposition has requested that the registration be transferred to him, the Patent Office shall transfer the registration to the opponent instead of cancelling the registration if it finds that it is the opponent who pursuant to section 1 is entitled to obtain registration. The second and third paragraphs of section 32 apply correspondingly.
The Patent Office shall reject an opposition if there is no obstacle as referred in the first paragraph to sustaining the design registration.
When the Patent Office’s decision in respect of an opposition is final, notice of the decision shall be entered in the Register of Designs and published.
Sec. 22. The final first instance decision with respect to an application for registration may be appealed to the second instance department of the Patent Office, the Board of Appeals, if the decision is not in the applicant’s favour.
The final first instance decision with respect to an opposition may be appealed to the Board of Appeals by the design right holder or the opponent if the decision is not in favour of the party concerned.
If a request for resumption in accordance with section 14,third paragraph , is refused, or a request for transfer in accordance with section 17 is accepted, the applicant may file an appeal against the decision with the Board of Appeals. If a request for transfer in accordance with section 17i s refused, the person requesting the transfer may appeal against the decision.
Sec. 23. An appeal must be filed with the Patent Office within two months from the date on which notification of the decision was sent to the party concerned. The stipulated fee shall be paid within the same time limit. Failing this, the appeal will not be considered.
Even if the appeal is withdrawn, it may be examined if special circumstances so indicate.
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�: General Provisions 1-8
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�Entry into force (of last amending Act): January 1, 1997.
�Source: Official translation supplied by the Norwegian Patent Office (Patentstyret).
�** Added by the International Bureau of WIPO.
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Chapter 2
�The Application for Registration and the Processing thereof
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