A recent decision of the European Court of Justice sheds new
light on the unregistered design right that exists in the European
Union and may make Canadians envious.
The Facts
The plaintiff in the case designed and sold women's
clothing, which was both stylish and popular. The defendant is a
substantial retailing group in Ireland who sells, among other
things, women's clothing. In 2005 the plaintiff designed and
commenced to sell in Ireland a striped shirt (in a blue and stone
brown version) and a black knit top. The defendant purchased
samples of these garments and had copies manufactured outside of
Ireland and then began to sell them in its Irish stores in late
2006.
The plaintiff commenced proceedings in the Irish High Court and
succeeded on the basis that it's unregistered design in the
garments had been infringed. The defendant appealed from the
judgement and continued to dispute the validity of the unregistered
community designs. The appellate court stayed
