Design Law

Lindahl has specialist legal expertise in all design law matters and ensures that your unique design is protected in the best possible way. We are available to help and advise when you are about to register your design and in the event of a dispute.

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In disputes that require particular expert knowledge in design law, for example protecting and representing our clients in cases of suspected design infringement, Lindahl works in an integrated manner with specialist groups in the relevant areas. Our lawyers in dispute resolution and litigation are experienced in continuously handling commercial disputes in all industries at both national and international level.

For all design law issues that arise, our lawyers are available for qualified advice, assessment and formulation of strategies, and support our clients with the management and maintenance of the strategies.

Do not hesitate to contact us if you need advice on design law or other intellectual property areas.

New and distinctive appearance

There are two important criteria that must be met for your design to be protected. The first criterion is that your design must be new. It is therefore important not to wait to arrange design protection after launch.

Another decisive criterion for you to be able to maintain design protection for your product is that your design must be distinctive. This means that the appearance of the product must differ sufficiently from previously known designs.

Advantages of design protection

There are many advantages to protecting your design through design registration. In addition to giving you the conditions for better profitability, it gives the creator of a product an important advantage, as the creator or rights holder is presumed to own the exclusive right to commercially exploit the design of the product. If you also end up in a conflict because someone has used a design that resembles yours, you have greater opportunities to stop the infringement.

A design registration means, in other words, that you as the rights holder have a documented right to the design, which can also make your company more attractive to invest in and gives you a better starting point in contract negotiations, for example regarding assignment and licence agreements with others. A design registration can also mean that you gain a competitive advantage over others in the market and can benefit from a hopefully larger market share.

What is design law?

Design law, also called design rights or pattern rights, protects the appearance of a particular product. If you have designed a product, it is natural that you are proud of it and want to do everything to protect the design, as you have probably spent a lot of time and money developing it. A design registration protects the appearance of your product and prevents others from using the same design for up to 25 years.

Compared to copyright, design protection arises as a starting point by the design being registered. Copyright, on the other hand, arises at the moment of creation without any registration being made. The disadvantage of copyright is that any protection is not tested until a dispute in court. Protection through design law may therefore be preferable, as there is a presumption that protection exists in connection with any dispute arising and before the dispute is tried in court.

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Practice areas

Lindahl is a full-service firm with a comprehensive offering in all areas of business law.

With vast experience, high competence, and strong commitment, our aim is to create business value and make a difference for our clients, regardless of the industry or legal area involved. Explore all of Lindahl's practice areas.