The final tranche of legislative amendments resulting from the Designs Amendment (Advisory Council on Intellectual Property Response) Act 2021 (discussed in our previous article) has come into force today (10 March 2022). These amendments include (among others):
- the introduction of a grace period for designs (12 months running up to the priority date);
- the introduction of a prior use infringement exemption for registered designs; and
- affording exclusive licensees standing to bring infringement proceedings.
Also implemented today are particular formalities-related requirements set by the Registrar of Designs, which we will discuss in a further article soon.
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