Page 19 - The Katten Kattwalk - Fall 2025 - Issue 30
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• Fighting design theft: Giving the UK Intellectual with legal disputes about intellectual property,
Property Office (UKIPO) powers to search and to make enforcement more affordable for small
reject designs lacking novelty or individual businesses, including independent designers and
character and introducing “bad faith” provisions emerging fashion brands.
against dishonest applications.
• Modernising for digital innovation: Expanding
• Streamlining rights: Simplifying overlapping accepted application formats to include
protections, harmonising procedures and computer-aided design (CAD) files and video
allowing applicants to defer publication of clips, and updating definitions to ensure that
designs for up to 18 months, which would digital and future technologies, such as digital
be particularly useful for industries with long fashion assets, are properly protected.
product cycles, such as luxury or couture fashion.
Next Steps
• Post-Brexit certainty: Addressing the loss of The Design Consultation invites input from
automatic EU protection and exploring new designers, legal professionals and other stakeholders.
solutions for businesses operating across Feedback received will inform future policy decisions
markets.
and contribute to developing a system that fosters
• Improving enforcement and access: Creating innovation across the UK fashion industry and
a small claims track for design disputes within beyond. The consultation will close on 27 November
the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court, a 2025. For further information or to participate in the
specialist court in the United Kingdom that deals Design Consultation, please refer to the UKIPO’s
official consultation here.”
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