Protection of fashion designs

Main source of fashion design is the creativity of designers. Fashion designers create fashion trends while presenting their unique designs. Those who design in the direction of fashion trends which have been exhibited by the creative designers may cause incidence of infringement. Fashion designs, besides their historical significance, is a part of a massive industry and provide high value to their owner. These designs are the foundation of fashion industry which brings in millions of dollars each year. Therefore, providing legal protection for fashion designs has utmost importance to keep fashion industry up on its feet. Within the scope of this thesis, historical background, definition, elements and types of fashion designs will be explained, design protection in Turkish law, comparative law and international law will be interpreted under the light of court decisions.