Australian Registered Designs
General Information
| Deadline | When a deadline falls due on a weekend or holiday, you may file by the next working day after the deadline without any loss of rights. |
| Applicant | Proprietor of design, individual or corporation; may be assignee or actual author. |
| Novelty | Relative novelty i.e. no public use in Australia or publication anywhere in the world, before the filing or priority date (whichever is the earlier). Further, the design must not have been disclosed in a design application with an earlier priority date but published on or after the priority date. |
| Scope | Protects only features of shape and configuration and/or pattern or ornament of the article as shown in the representations. The design may relate to a wholly functional article. |
| Term | Initial term is 5 years from the filing date, renewable for a further 5 year period (total of 10 years). |
| Marking | Not compulsory, but failure to do so may affect infringement damages. Recommended marking: "RD" or "regd des". |
| Multiple Designs | Can be filed as a single application providing they relate to:
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| Examination | Every application is examined for formalities, but substantive examination is carried out only on request. The design is registered after the formalities examination, and substantive examination is carried out after registration, after a request for examination is filed by the owner or by any other party. |
| Enforcement | A registered design can be enforced only after substantive examination. |
Filing Requirements
Minimum Requirements for Urgent Filing |
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| Applicant | Full legal name, nationality, and address. |
| Representations | Drawings or photographs of each view of the item, sufficient to show the whole of the item clearly (preferably JPEG or PDF format). If Convention priority is claimed, the representations should match (or at least include) those of the Convention priority application. |
| Name of Article | To which the design is to be applied. |
| Novel Features | An indication of the features of the article in which novelty is claimed; it is acceptable to state that the general appearance of the article is novel. |
| Convention Priority Details | Including country and priority date, if Convention priority is claimed. A Convention priority document is not required unless specifically requested by the examiner. |
Additional Requirements which may be provided after filing date |
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| Examination | Whether a request for examination is to be filed. |
NOTE: a signed authorisation of agent is not required.