Ask an Expert Attorney
What Our Clients Say ...
I want to personally thank Charlie Heal , Emily Fox, Cara McAtee, and the entire team at Albright IP for their hard work, dedication, and professionalism in helping me submit my first ever patent: the Baffer Ball fire suppression system.
From the very first meeting, Charlie and Emily made everything feel clear, comfortable, and respectful. They listened carefully to my ideas, even though I’m not from a technical or legal background – I’m a painter and decorator by trade. But they believed in my vision and treated it with such care and seriousness that I felt truly supported as an inventor.
Over several months, we worked closely by email and phone. Charlie and the team guided me step by step to build one of the strongest, clearest, and most professional patent drafts I could have hoped for. The claims they wrote are powerful, and the language used shows how deeply they understood my invention. They didn’t just file a document – they helped shape a legacy.
Charlie, even though he is young, is incredibly professional and experienced. I am amazed at how he managed such a complex project with kindness, patience, and precision. Emily and Cara were also fantastic throughout.
This was not just paperwork – this was my dream since childhood. And Albright IP helped me make that dream real.
💬 I look forward to working with them again on future patents. The Baffer Ball is just the beginning – and I am proud that Albright IP was there from Day 1.
Thank you so much again — from the bottom of my heart.
— Morteza
He’s not only incredibly knowledgeable, but also warm and approachable. No question has ever felt too small, and he genuinely cares about the success of my business. I’d highly recommend Marc to anyone looking for a dedicated, trustworthy, and skilled patent attorney.
The patent was filed within weeks and had a depth of technical input from Albright that was excellent. I'm very pleased.
I have filed patents in the past but working with Albright IP was a totally different experience. I recommend them without hesitation.
Their knowledge regarding the patent process is extensive.
They have help me navigate the complex process to gain patent granted on my first design and patent pending on my second design.
I feel reassured and confident to put my designs in their hands knowing they will give the best advice based on the facts and not for their own financial gain.
Brilliant company.
Kathryn Haslam
Comfyi.
They were also very clear regarding fees, and set out a very helpful visual timeline and cost breakdown on the whole patent application process at the pre-sales stage. This emphasis on making sure I understood all aspects of the work, and having documentation to help with that, is something I didn't see with any of the other patent services I was talking to at the time. This clear communication continued throughout our interactions.
Would recommend Albright IP to anyone looking to patent an invention. The patent they filed for me was for a software invention.
No upselling for their fee either, just a fair, professional appraisal...
Thanks to Allbright, I am not spending thousands on a low hope project (when I so easily could have been).
Then end result being that we accomplished everything I wanted to in time and budget.
Highly recommend.
Need a Product Designer?
Helpful Tips
Do I have to identify the designer?
It is possible to waive the name of the designer when filing a European Community Design, but you should be sure that you have the rights to the design
EUROPEAN DESIGNS
European design protection is provided by what is known as ‘Registered Community Design’ protection, which may in future be called ‘European Union registered designs’ to match with EU trade marks. A European Union Registered design is a unitary right giving protection in all of the countries of the European Union in a single registration. The official fees are low, therefore making it a highly cost-effective method of protecting designs across the whole of Europe.
EUROPEAN REGISTERED DESIGN APPLICATIONS
The requirements for filing a European Community Design application are very similar to those for filing a UK design application, because the legislation governing these methods of protection is now effectively harmonised. Please see our corresponding page regarding UK design protection for further details.
What is protected by a Registered Community Design?
A Registered Community Design can protect the whole or a part of a product resulting from the features of, in particular, the lines, contours, colours, shape, texture or materials of the product or its ornamentation.
Here, ‘product’ means any industrial or handicraft item other than a computer program and, in particular, includes packaging, get-up, graphic symbols, typographic typefaces and parts intended to be assembled into a complex product. ‘Complex product’ means a product which is composed of at least two replaceable component parts, permitting disassembly and reassembly of the product.
What is needed to proceed with a European design application?
Before filing an application for a RCD, we need the following information:
- Full applicant details – e.g. your full name or company name (plus state or incorporation) and address;
- Representations – drawings or photographs of the design, suitable for quality reproduction by a photocopier, e.g. line drawings are most easily reproduced;
- Details of any earlier “priority” applications;
- The title or classification of the design.
For the representations, you should generally show the six views of a cube and a perspective view, but we can advise on this as necessary.
What happens when I’m ready to file an application?
Please explore the following sections for details of the Registered Community Design application procedure.
blank
Registrability
To be registrable, a design must be new and have individual character.
‘New’ means not disclosed anywhere in the world before the filing date of the registered design, subject to some exceptions. For example, the design is still considered new if the disclosure could not reasonably have become known to persons carrying on business in the European Economic Area.
A design is considered to have ‘individual character’ if the overall impression it produces on the informed user differs from the overall impression produced on such a user by any design which has been made available to the public.
Certain types of designs are excluded from registration. For example, features of a design dictated solely by their technical function, or features which must have a particular form and dimensions for connection to another product, cannot be protected by a registered design.
For more information, please contact us by calling +44 (0) 1242 691 801 to speak with one of our qualified British attorneys.
Filing your application
Albright IP can prepare suitable images to protect your design and file them at the EUIPO. Normally, line drawings are most appropriate, but we can prepare suitable photographs if colour is particularly important to the design.
Registered Community design applications are typically filed using an online filing system. If certain criteria are met, an application can qualify for ‘fast track’ registration, and could be registered in a matter of days.
For more information, please contact us by calling +44 (0) 1242 691 801 to speak with one of our qualified British attorneys.
Design Protection in additional territories
Albright IP will remind you of the possibility of filing corresponding foreign design applications claiming priority from your European filing. This opportunity typically expires 6 months after the filing of your registered Community design application.
After this deadline, it is no longer possible to back date another design application to the date of your European application. Therefore, a prior disclosure may act against subsequent design applications.
Some territories, including the UK, allow a grace period of up to 1 year from public disclosure of a design in which to validly file an application, but most countries do not allow this. Therefore we do not advise that you rely on this grace period unless absolutely necessary, because this can prevent you from obtaining valid protection in some foreign countries.
For more information, please contact us by calling +44 (0) 1242 691 801 to speak with one of our qualified British attorneys.
Registration
Registered Community designs can be registered and in force relatively quickly, normally a couple of weeks or so after filing. However, if the application receives objections, these will need to be addressed before the design can be registered.
Once registered, the EUIPO will publish the design and issue the certificate of registration, and is treated as having been in force from the date of filing the design application.
For more information, please contact us by calling +44 (0) 1242 691 801 to speak with one of our qualified British attorneys.
Renewal
Once registered, a registered Community design will remain in force for 5 years. Renewal fees can then be paid to extend the period of protection by another 5 years, up to a maximum term of protection of 25 years.
For a RCD, design renewal fees can be paid up to 6 months late, with a surcharge. The cost of renewal tends to increase for each additional 5 year period in which the design is kept in force. If a renewal fee is not paid, the registered design will lapse.
For more information, please contact us by calling +44 (0) 1242 691 801 to speak with one of our qualified British attorneys.
Design Law - Legal Texts
What if I have a lot of design variations to protect?
It is possible to file multiple designs in a single application, subject to the designs being in the same classification. This is more cost-effective than filing separate applications.
For further advice on this, please contact us by calling +44 (0) 1242 691 801 to speak with one of our qualified British attorneys.