Hong Kong Ordinances

REGISTERED DESIGNS ORDINANCE - SECT 2

Interpretation

Caution: This is a past version. See the current version here.

Amendments retroactively made - see 25 of 1998 s. 2; 22 of 1999 s. 3

(1) In this Ordinance, unless the context otherwise requires- "application for
registration" (註冊申請) means an application for  registration of a
design made under section 12; "article" (物品) means any article of
manufacture and includes any part of an article if that part is made and sold
separately; "artistic work" (藝術作品) has the same meaning as in Part II
of the Copyright  Ordinance ( Cap 528); (Amended 92 of 1997 s. 280 & Schs. 2 &
3) "assignee" (承讓人) includes the personal representative of a deceased
assignee, and references to the assignee of any person include references to
the assignee of the personal representative or assignee of that person;
"corresponding design" (相應外觀設計), in relation to an artistic work,
means a design which if applied to an article would produce something which
would be treated for the purposes of Part II of the Copyright Ordinance ( Cap 
528) as a copy of that work; (Amended 22 of 1999 s. 3) "court" (法院) means
the Court of First Instance; (Amended 25 of 1998 s. 2) "design" (外觀設計)
means features of shape, configuration, pattern or ornament applied to an
article by any industrial process, being features which in the finished
article appeal to and are judged by the eye, but does not include-

   (a)  a method or principle of construction; or

   (b)  features of shape or configuration of an article which-

        (i)    are dictated solely by the function which the article has to
               perform; or

        (ii)   are dependent upon the appearance of another article of which
               the article is intended by the designer to form an integral
               part; "designer" (設計人), in relation to a design, means
               the person who creates it or, if there are 2 or more such
               persons, each of those persons; "employee" (僱員) means a
               person who works or (where the employment has ceased) worked
               under a contract of employment (whether with the Government or
               with any other person); "employer" (僱主), in relation to an
               employee, means the person by whom the employee is or was
               employed; "exclusive licence" (專用特許) means a licence
               from the registered owner of a registered design conferring on
               the licensee, or on him and persons authorized by him, to the
               exclusion of all other persons (including the
               registered owner), any right in respect of the design that
               would otherwise be exercisable exclusively by the
               registered owner, and "exclusive licensee"
               (專用特許持有人) shall be construed accordingly; "filing
               date" (提交日期), in relation to an
               application for registration, means the date determined under
               section 14 as the filing date of the application; "owner"
               (擁有人) has the meaning assigned by section 3; "Paris
               Convention" (《巴黎公約》) means the Convention for the
               Protection of Industrial Property signed at Paris on 20 March
               1883, as revised or amended from time to time; "Paris
               Convention country" (巴黎公約國) means-

   (a)  any country for the time being specified in the Schedule as being a
        country which has acceded to the Paris Convention;

   (b)  any territory or area subject to the authority or under the suzerainty
        of any country referred to in paragraph (a), or any territory or area
        administered by any such country, on behalf of which such country has
        acceded to the Paris Convention; "prescribed" (訂明) means
        prescribed or provided for by the rules; "priority date"
        (優先權日期), in relation to an application for registration,
        means the date regarded as being the filing date of the application
        pursuant to section 17; "protected layout-design (topography)"
        (受保護的布圖設計 (拓樸圖)) has the meaning assigned to
        that term by section 2(1) of the Layout-design (Topography) of 
        Integrated Circuits Ordinance ( Cap 445); "Register" (註冊紀錄冊)
        means the Register of Designs kept under this Ordinance; "registered
        design" (註冊外觀設計) means a design registered under
        section 25; "registered owner" (註冊擁有人), in relation to a
        registered design, means the person whose name is for the time being
        entered in the Register as the owner of the design or, if there are 2
        or more such persons, each of those persons; "Registrar" (處長)
        means the Registrar of Designs; "Registrar of Designs"
        (外觀設計註冊處處長) means the person holding that office by
        virtue of the
        Director of Intellectual Property (Establishment) Ordinance (
        Cap 412); "Registry" (註冊處) means the Designs Registry
        administered by the Registrar; "rules" (規則) means rules made by
        the Registrar under section 79, 80, 81 or 82, as the case may be; "set
        of articles" (物品套件) means 2 or more articles of the same
        general character that are ordinarily on sale together or intended to
        be used together, to each of which the same design, or the same design
        with modifications or variations not sufficient to alter the character
        or substantially to affect the identity thereof, is applied; "World
        Trade Organization Agreement" (《世界貿易組織協議》) means
        the Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization done at
        Marrakesh in 1994, as revised or amended from time to time; "WTO
        member" (世界貿易組織成員) means any country, territory or
        area for the time being specified in the Schedule as being a country,
        territory or area which has acceded to the
        World Trade Organization Agreement.

(2) Unless the context otherwise requires, any reference in this Ordinance-

   (a)  to the filing of a document shall be construed as a reference to the
        filing of the document with the Registrar;

   (b)  to an article in respect of which a design is registered shall, in the
        case of a design registered in respect of a set of articles, be
        construed as a reference to any article of that set; or

   (c)  to the infringement of a design or registered design shall be
        construed as a reference to the infringement of any right in the
        design conferred by this Ordinance.

(3) The expressions listed in the left-hand column below are defined in, or
fall to be construed in accordance with, the provisions of this Ordinance
listed in the right-hand column in relation to those expressions. Expressions
Relevant provision Divisional application (分開申請) section 22(1) Formal
requirements (形式上的規定) section 24(4) Government use (政府徵用)
section 37(2) Kit (配套元件) section 31(5) Official international
exhibition (正式國際展覽) section 9(3) Regular national filing
(正規國家提交) section 15(4)

"application for registration" (註冊申請) "article" (物品) "artistic
work" (藝術作品) "assignee" (承讓人) "corresponding design"
(相應外觀設計) "court" (法院) "design" (外觀設計) "designer"
(設計人) "employee" (僱員) "employer" (僱主) "exclusive licence"
(專用特許) "exclusive licensee" (專用特許持有人) "filing date"
(提交日期) "owner" (擁有人) "Paris Convention" (《巴黎公約》)
"Paris Convention country" (巴黎公約國) "prescribed" (訂明) "priority
date" (優先權日期) "protected layout-design (topography)"
(受保護的布圖設計 (拓樸圖)) "Register" (註冊紀錄冊)
"registered design" (註冊外觀設計) "registered owner" (註冊擁有人)
"Registrar" (處長) "Registrar of Designs" (外觀設計註冊處處長)
"Registry" (註冊處) "rules" (規則) "set of articles" (物品套件)
"World Trade Organization Agreement" (《世界貿易組織協議》) "WTO
member" (世界貿易組織成員)