Section 53 Things done in reliance on registration of design.

United Kingdom

(1)

The copyright in an artistic work is not infringed by anything done—

(a)

in pursuance of an assignment or licence made or granted by a person registered F1—

(i)

under the M1Registered Designs Act 1949 as the proprietor of a corresponding design, and F2, or

(ii)

under the Community Design Regulation as the right holder of a corresponding registered Community design

(b)

in good faith in reliance on the registration and without notice of any proceedings for the cancellation F3or invalidation of the registration or F4, in a case of registration under the 1949 Act, for rectifying the relevant entry in the register of designs;

and this is so notwithstanding that the person registered as the proprietor was not the proprietor of the design for the purposes of the 1949 Act F5 or, in a case of registration under the Community Design Regulation, that the person registered as the right holder was not the right holder of the design for the purposes of the Regulation.

(2)

In subsection (1) a “corresponding design”, in relation to an artistic work, means a design within the meaning of the 1949 Act which if applied to an article would produce something which would be treated for the purposes of this Part as a copy of the artistic work.

F6(3)

In subsection (1), a “corresponding registered Community design”, in relation to an artistic work, means a design within the meaning of the Community Design Regulation which if applied to an article would produce something which would be treated for the purposes of this Part as a copy of the artistic work.

F7(4)

In this section, “the Community Design Regulation” means Council Regulation (EC) No 6/2002 of 12 December 2001 on Community designs.

Annotations

Textual amendments

F1: Word in s. 53(1)(a) inserted (1.10.2014) by Intellectual Property Act 2014 (c. 18), ss. 5(2)(a), 24(1); S.I. 2014/2330, art. 3, Sch.
F2: Words in s. 53(1)(a) inserted (1.10.2014) by Intellectual Property Act 2014 (c. 18), ss. 5(2)(b), 24(1); S.I. 2014/2330, art. 3, Sch.
F3: Words in s. 53(1)(b) inserted (9.12.2001) by S.I. 2001/3949, reg. 9(1), Sch. 1 para. 16 (with transitional provisions in regs. 10-14)
F4: Words in s. 53(1)(b) inserted (1.10.2014) by Intellectual Property Act 2014 (c. 18), ss. 5(3), 24(1); S.I. 2014/2330, art. 3, Sch.
F5: Words in s. 53(1) inserted (1.10.2014) by Intellectual Property Act 2014 (c. 18), ss. 5(4), 24(1); S.I. 2014/2330, art. 3, Sch.
F6: S. 53(3) inserted (1.10.2014) by Intellectual Property Act 2014 (c. 18), ss. 5(5), 24(1); S.I. 2014/2330, art. 3, Sch.
F7: S. 53(4) inserted (1.10.2014) by Intellectual Property Act 2014 (c. 18), ss. 5(6), 24(1); S.I. 2014/2330, art. 3, Sch.

Marginal citations

M1: 1949 c. 88.

Notes on Part I

Modifications

C1: Pt. 1 extended (with modifications) by S.I. 1989/988, art. 2(3), 4, 5, Sch. 4 (with art. 6) (which S.I. was revoked by S.I. 1989/1293, Sch. 5)
C2: Pt. 1 extended (with modifications) by S.I. 1989/1293, arts. 2(3), 3, 4, 5, Sch. 4 (with art. 6) (which S.I. was revoked by S.I.1993/942, art. 8, Sch. 5)
C3: Pt. 1 extended (with modifications) by S.I. 1993/942, arts. 2(3), 4, 5, Sch. 4 (with art. 6) (as amended by S.I.1994/263, art. 2 and S.I. 1995/2987, art. 3) (which S.I. and amending S.Is. were revoked by S.I. 1999/1751, art. 8, Sch. 6)
C4: Pt. 1 extended (with modifications) (22.7.1999) by S.I. 1999/1751, arts. 2(3), 3, 4(3)(5), 5, 7, Schs. 2, 4, 5 (as amended (22.4.2003) by S.I. 2003/774, arts. 2-5) (which S.I. and amending S.I. were revoked (1.5.2005) by S.I. 2005/852, art. 8)
C5: Pt. 1 extended in part (with modifications) (coming into force in accordance with art. 1 of the amending S.I.) by The Copyright (Bermuda) Order 2003 (S.I. 2003/1517), art. 2, Sch. (which S.I. was revoked (12.11.2009) by S.I. 2009/2749, arts. 1, 2)
C6: Pt. 1 modified (31.10.2003) by The Copyright and Related Rights Regulations 2003 (S.I. 2003/2498), reg. 37(2) (with regs. 31-40)
C7: Pt. 1 extended (with modifications) (1.5.2005) by The Copyright and Performances (Application to Other Countries) Order 2005 (S.I. 2005/852), arts. 2-5, Sch. (with art. 7) (which S.I. was revoked (6.4.2006) by S.I. 2006/316, art. 1(3))
C8: Pt. 1 extended in part (with modifications) (coming into force in accordance with art. 1 of the amending S.I.) by The Copyright (Gibraltar) Order 2005 (S.I. 2005/853), art. 2, Sch. (which S.I. is revoked (coming into force in accordance with art. 1 of the amending S.I.) by S.I. 2006/1039, arts. 1, 2)
C9: Pt. 1 extended (with modifications) (6.4.2006) by The Copyright and Performances (Application to Other Countries) Order 2006 (S.I. 2006/316), arts. 2-5, Sch. (with art. 7) (which S.I. was revoked (6.4.2007) by S.I. 2007/273, art. 1(3))
C10: Pt. 1 extended (with modifications) (6.4.2007) by The Copyright and Performances (Application to Other Countries) Order 2007 (S.I. 2007/273), arts. 2-5, Sch. (with art. 7) (which S.I. was revoked (6.4.2008) by S.I. 2008/677, art. 1(3))
C11: Pt. 1 extended (with modifications) (6.4.2008) by The Copyright and Performances (Application to Other Countries) Order 2008 (S.I. 2008/677), arts. 2-5, Sch. (with art. 7) (which S.I. was revoked (6.4.2012) by S.I. 2012/799, art. 1(3))
C12: Pt. 1 extended (with modifications) (6.4.2012) by The Copyright and Performances (Application to Other Countries) Order 2012 (S.I. 2012/799), arts. 1(1), arts. 2-5, Schs. (with art. 8) (which S.I. was revoked (6.4.2013) by S.I. 2013/536), art. 1(3))
C13: Pt. 1 extended in part (with modifications) (6.4.2013) by The Copyright and Performances (Application to Other Countries) Order 2013 (S.I. 2013/536), arts. 1(1), 2, 4, 5, Sch. (with art. 8) (as amended (6.4.2015) by S.I. 2015/216, art. 2) (which S.I. and amending S.I. were revoked (6.4.2017) by S.I. 2016/1219, art. 1(3))
C14: Pt. 1 extended in part (Cayman Islands) (with modifications) (coming into force in accordance with art. 1 of the amending Order) by The Copyright (Cayman Islands) Order 2015 (S.I. 2015/795), arts. 1, 2, Sch. (as amended by S.I. 2016/370, arts. 1, 2-40)
C15: Pt. 1 restricted (6.4.2017) by The Copyright and Performances (Application to Other Countries) Order 2016 (S.I. 2016/1219), arts. 1(1), 2, 3, 6 (with art. 13) (as amended (15.12.2024) by S.I. 2024/193, arts. 1(2), 3, 4, 5(1) and S.I. 2024/1124, arts. 1(2), 7)
C16: Pt. 1 extended (with modifications) (6.4.2017) by The Copyright and Performances (Application to Other Countries) Order 2016 (S.I. 2016/1219), arts. 1(1), 4, 5, 7, 8, Sch. Pt. 1 (with art. 13) (as amended: (26.6.2021) by S.I. 2021/636, arts. 1, 2(2); (1.12.2021) by S.I. 2021/1258, arts. 1, 2(2); (15.4.2023) by S.I. 2023/296, arts. 1, 2(2); and (15.12.2024) by S.I. 2024/193, arts. 1(2), 5(2)(3) and S.I. 2024/1124, arts. 1(2), 7)
C17: Pt. 1: power to extend conferred (27.4.2017) by Digital Economy Act 2017 (c. 30), ss. 118(1), 119(7)(8)(a)

Notes on Chapter III

Modifications

C1: Pt. 1 Ch. III amended by Broadcasting Act 1990 (c. 42, SIF 96), s. 176, Sch. 17 para. 7(1)
C2: Pt. 1 Ch. III applied (with modifications) (1.12.1996) by S.I. 1996/2967, reg. 17(1)-(3) (with Pt. III)
C3: Pt. 1 Ch. III continued (31.10.2003) by virtue of The Copyright and Related Rights Regulations 2003 (S.I. 2003/2498), reg. 33, (with regs. 31-40)