EU-Georgia Intellectual Property Project (EUGIPP): examination guidelines for national and international designs
On 15 November 2021, the National Intellectual Property Center of Georgia (Sakpatenti) officially published the guidelines for national and international designs. The EU-Georgia Intellectual Property Project (EUGIPP), implemented by the EUIPO, has supported this multiannual project activity to bring the practices of the EU and Georgian IP systems closer together. IP experts spent several months working in close collaboration with lawyers from the EUIPO and Sakpatenti to draft these guidelines in Georgian, which are an important project milestone.
The guidelines, developed on the basis of the EUIPO design guidelines using the same methodology, will enhance the administrative frameworks for protecting intellectual property rights (IPRs) in Georgia and strengthen the quality of IPR administration services. Moreover, they will support Sakpatenti in taking consistent decisions and guarantee that Sakpatenti’s file-handling practice is aligned with the latest EU developments.
In view of further aligning Georgian standards with those of the EU, the guidelines incorporate the EUIPN common practices for designs (CP6 and CP10). These practices aim to ensure that design registration application procedures and examination are consistent and the outcomes more predictable.
In particular, the common practice on graphic representations of designs (CP6) is integrated in the guidelines to safeguard the principle of legal certainty and ensure that users have access to a flexible design registration system.
Moreover, the guidelines take into account the criteria for assessing disclosure of designs on the internet (CP10). This is to ensure that the design system continues to effectively protect the rights of design holders in a technologically advancing world.
The guidelines for national and international designs are available in Georgian and in English. They constitute a powerful tool to promote transparency and increase predictability for the benefit of both applicants for design registration in Georgia and the design examiners as well.
The guidelines can be accessed by clicking on the links below: