At a glance
Policy ID: 161
Status: On hold
Priority: Low
Issue Summary
IP Australia received a submission from a stakeholder that proposed amendments to the Designs Act 2003 to clarify the effect of ownership entitlement errors on the validity of a registered design.
Recent reforms introduced provisions that limit the circumstances in which a court may revoke a registered design because a person was incorrectly identified as the owner when the design was registered. The stakeholder has suggested that the Designs Act 2003 could be further clarified by adopting an approach similar to that used in the patents system, where a patent is not invalid solely because it was granted to the wrong person or did not include all entitled persons.
The proposal seeks to provide greater certainty about the consequences of ownership entitlement issues and align aspects of the designs framework with arrangements that apply under the Patents Act 1990.
History
On hold, 28 September 2026