Legal protection of industrial design

ABSTRACTMaster With ThesisLegal Protection of Industrial DesignSeval AKKAŞDokuz Eylul UniversityInstitute of Social SciencesDepartment of Private LawA design is appearance of the whole or a part of a product resulting fromthe features which can be perceived through senses of human, in particular, thelines, contours, colours, shape, texture, elasticity and/or materials of the productitself and/or its ornamentation. The design may be either bi-dimensional orthree dimensional.In Turkish Law, an arrangement related to the protection of industrialdesigns was made by a Governmental Decree under no. 554 (GovernmentalDecree on Industrial Design.).The Decree has been an arrangement for registered designs.Unregistered designs would be protected under the general legal principles.According to the Decree, a design shall be protected to the extent that itis new and has individual character. The designs dictated by their, technicalfunction, the designs of interconnections and the designs contrary to policy ormorality wouldn?t be protected.A registered design shall be protected for a period of five years as fromthe date of filing of the application. The right holder may have the term ofprotection renewed for one are more periods of five years each, up to a totalterm of 25 years from the date of filing.According to the Decree, a registered design shall confer on its holder theexclusive right to use it and to prevent any third party not having his consentfrom using it. The aforementioned use covers the making, offering, putting onthe market, importing a exporting or, using of a product in which the design isincorporated or to which it is applied, or stocking such a product.Key World:1) Design, 2) Registered Design, 3) Novelty, 4) Distinctive Character, 5)Protection