The protection of unregistered designs according to the Industrial Property Law

With the rapid change of fashion, it became a necessity to protect the designs that were not registered by the designers. It is aimed whether the current need is met and the problems that may be encountered with the protection means introduced by law to unregistered designs. The Industrial Property Law, which came into force on 10 January 2017, regulates the protection of designs. In accordance with the provisions of the law, designs are protected as registered if they are registered. But if designs are not registered, they are protected as unregistered designs since they have been submitted to the public for the first time in Turkey. A new era was initiated with the unregistered design protection model with IPL (Industrial Property Law). In terms of the protection of designs, the conditions such as innovation, distinctive character, making it public and the unregistered designs been made public for the first time in Turkey were examined. The problems experienced in the proof of the protection of designs for the owners of the design have been handled with the developing technology. To solve these problems, a short-term "e-application" solution such as a registration system can be introduced to the Turkish Patent and Trademark Agency. In this way, the proof of the right of unregistered design will be provided when the design is first put on the market and when it is to protect the same or similar designs in an unregistered way.