Section 12 of the Nigerian Patents & Designs Act, LFN 2004, provides that "any combination of lines and/or colours and three-dimensional form whether or not associated with colours is an industrial design, if it is intended by the creator to be used as a model or pattern to be multiplied by industrial process and is not intended solely to obtain a technical result."
Industrial design is generally protected by registration with the Nigerian Patents and Designs Registry. The Patents and Designs Act governs the registration of industrial designs and according to the Act, an industrial design is registrable if it is new and not contrary to public order or morality.
Procedure to register an industrial design:
- Conduct a search to ensure that your design is new and not already registered by someone else.
- Prepare your application with the necessary information and documents required for the application such as:
- Name and address of the applicant(s) – individual or company.
- Drawings, photographs, or representations of the design.
- A brief description of the design.
- Power of Attorney (if filing through an agent).
- Priority document (if claiming priority from an earlier application).
- Obtain and complete the appropriate application form from the Nigerian Industrial Designs Registry.
- Submit the completed application form along with the supporting documents to the Nigerian Industrial Designs Registry.
- Pay the required filing fees at the time of submission.
- Examination and publication by the Industrial Designs Registry to assess whether your design meets the necessary requirements for registration. Where it is satisfactory, design will be published in the Nigerian Industrial Designs Journal.
- Opposition period of 2-months. If there are no objections or where resolved in applicant's favour, the design will proceed to registration.
- Registration and issuance of certificate. The Nigerian Industrial Designs Registry will issue a certificate of registration for the industrial design.
It is recommended to seek professional legal advice to ensure you have the most up-to-date and accurate information for registering an industrial design in Nigeria.
Originally published by 19 November, 2023
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
