Simplifying industrial designs applications

By Estudio Chaloupka

To simplify national productive development, on May 8, 2019, the Argentine government issued Decree 353/2019, which regulates the Law on Industrial Designs (No. 6673 of August 9, 1963). “It is necessary to adapt the existing regulation to the new modalities and requirements on the matter, in order to adapt new electronic management tools, reduce administrative and procedure burdens, shorten their deadlines and provide to their de-bureaucratization”, states the Decree.

The Decree regulates matters such as the possibility of waiving property rights over industrial models and designs, the renewal of the rights and the possibility of converting an application for an invention patent or utility model in a industrial design application, within 30 days of filing an objection to the patentability of an invention.

It also establishes the adoption of the Locarno Agreement for the classification of industrial designs, The Locarno Agreement, concluded at Locarno in 1968 and amended in 1979, establishes a classification for industrial designs (the Locarno Classification). The competent offices of the Contracting States must indicate in official documents and in any publication they issue in respect of the deposit or registration of industrial designs the numbers of the classes and subclasses of the Classification to which the goods incorporating the designs belong.