Bird & Bird hosts a Product Design Law Challenge: Design Right….or Wrong?

12th March 2020

Bird & Bird’s International Product Design group hosted a hugely successful event in London on Wednesday 26 February 2020, which took the form of a Product Design Law challenge based around a series of quiz questions taking attendees through the latest developments and trends in product design case law, enforcement strategies and filing practices.

The team looked at topics including the effect the recent Cofemel CJEU copyright decision might have on design protection in the UK, why it really matters where you first disclose your new designs and the new legal landscape for design protection created by Brexit.

The event brought together an impressive roster of clients from a range of sectors, including luxury goods, fashion, and furniture industries to name a few.

The afternoon kicked off with a warm welcome from Ewan Grist (Partner) who discussed the increased importance placed on protecting and enforcing product design in a range of different sectors, compared to what was previously the case even a few years ago. This was followed by Patricia Collis (Senior Associate) who questioned the audience on design rights after Brexit, as well as how the Hague system can be useful when seeking protection internationally. Christine Danos (Senior Associate) followed with a quiz on some key statistics around UK design cases and explained the significance of the Mattel v JDI case. Louise Vaziri (Senior Associate), who recently joined from being in-house at ASOS, provided useful insights into how to stop copycat products and the use of copyright over design rights in some cases. The final speaker of the day Tristan Sherliker (Senior Associate) brought the challenge to a close with a humorous yet informative summary of two significant cases: Beverly Hills Teddy Bear v PMS and the recent Cofemel v G-Star Raw decision.

We received great feedback on the different format used to provide valuable legal insights, and the opportunity to network with peers who are facing similar challenges in enforcing and protecting valuable product design.

Our speakers:

Ewan Grist, Partner

As a partner in our Intellectual Property practice based in London and Head of Bird & Bird’s International Product Design group, I specialise in protecting and enforcing innovative, or high tech product design and associated branding.