|
|
|
|
|
|
|
IP Newsletter | Spring/Summer 2017
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
TRADEMARK, DESIGN & UNFAIR COMPETITION
|
|
|
|
|
|
Amendments to the Design Protection Act
|
|
|
|
|
|
Several amendments to the Design Protection Act ("DPA") were published on March 21, 2017, as follows. The amendments will go into effect on September 22, 2017.
|
|
|
|
|
|
1. Grace Period for Design Applications Will Be Extended to One Year
|
|
|
|
|
|
Under the current DPA, a design shall not be deemed to lose novelty over an identical or similar design as long as the application for the design is filed within six months from the date when the identical or similar design was first laid-open. To take advantage of this grace period under the current DPA, the applicant must claim the novelty grace period (i) at the time of filing the application (documentation of the previous disclosure can be submitted within 30 days from the application date), (ii) when filing a response to an office action issued by the Korean Intellectual Property Office ("KIPO"), (iii) when filing a response to an opposition filed by a third party, or (iv) when filing a response to an invalidation action filed by a third party.
|
|
|
|
|
|
The amended DPA extends the current six month grace period to one year. The amendment also replaces (ii) "when filing a response to an office action issued by KIPO" with (ii) "up until KIPO issues a final decision whether to grant a design registration" (so an applicant can now claim the grace period at any time while the application is still pending).
|
|
|
|
|
|
2. Proof of Priority Will Be Eased
|
|
|
|
|
|
Under the current DPA, in order to claim priority, an application must include drawings substantially identical to the drawings in the foreign priority application, and a copy of the priority application certified by the foreign government must also be submitted.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Under the amended DPA, KIPO will now accept certain other documents to confirm the details of the foreign priority application. By this amendment, applicants will be able to use the WIPO Digital Access Service to submit priority documents (the Service allows priority documents to be securely exchanged between IP offices directly).
|
|
|
|
|
|
3. Penalties Will Be Increased for Various Offenses
|
|
|
|
|
|
The maximum fine for perjury by a witness, expert witness or interpreter under oath before the Intellectual Property Trial and Appeal Board ("IPTAB") will be increased from KRW 10,000,000 (approximately USD 9,000) to KRW 50,000,000 (approximately USD 45,000).
|
|
|
|
|
|
The maximum fine for falsely indicating that a design has been registered or applied for will be increased from KRW 20,000,000 (approximately USD 18,000) to KRW 30,000,000 (approximately USD 27,000).
|
|
|
|
|
|
The maximum fine for fraudulently obtaining a design registration or an IPTAB decision related to a design will be increased from KRW 20,000,000 (approximately USD 18,000) to KRW 30,000,000 (approximately USD 27,000).
|
|
|
|
|
|
Back to Main Page
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
If you have any questions regarding this article, please contact:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
For more information, please visit our website: www.ip.kimchang.com
|
|
|
|