Lee International

This is to inform you that the Korean Design Protection Act has been amended to address the frequent misuse of the partial substantive examination procedure and to enable legitimate owners to promptly and efficiently reclaim misappropriated design rights. The amendment takes effect on November 28, 2025. The summary of key changes is provided below:

1.      Amendments to Partial Substantive Examination Process

Under the pre-amended Design Protection Act, applicants in fast-moving industries, such as fashion, accessories, textiles, stationery, personal items, packaging, food products, and jewelry, could obtain expedited design registrations through the partial substantive examination, under which examiners were not permitted to (i) substantively examine novelty or (ii) conduct design searches.

However, this framework led to frequent misuse. Previously published or cancelled designs were sometimes re-registered and subsequently asserted improperly against legitimate owners. In addition, even when clear refusal grounds existed, examiners were unable to reject such applications under the pre-amended Design Protection Act.

To address these issues, the amendment introduces Article 62(5), which expressly authorizes examiners to refuse partial-examination applications ex officio when the design is clearly (i) not novel or (ii) violates the earlier-filing requirement, even without third-party submissions. This change is expected to improve examination quality, curb abusive filings, and prevent the creation and misuse of weak or misappropriated design rights.

2.      Extension of Opposition Filing Period

Previously, under Article 68(1), a third party may file an opposition only within three (3) months from the publication date of a partially-examined design registration. In practice, this short window often limited the effective use of the opposition procedure.

Under the amended law, if a party receives an infringement notice, including a written warning, a complaint, or a notice from an online marketplace requesting clarification in response to an infringement report, that party may file an opposition within three (3) months from the date of receiving the notice, even if the initial 3-month period has already elapsed, provided that the opposition is filed within one (1) year from the publication date. After one year has passed, the only available remedy is to pursue an invalidation trial.

This change is expected to enhance market stability by enabling unjustified design rights to be challenged and removed more promptly in the context of actual dispute.

3.      Introduction of Civil Claim for Transfer of Design Rights

Under the pre-amended Design Protection Act, when a party misappropriates a design and obtains registration without having legitimate rights, the true owner must first invalidate the improper registration and then refile the design to obtain protection. This two-step process has been both time-consuming and burdensome.

The amendment introduces a new procedure (Article 96-2), which allows the legitimate owner to directly claim the transfer of the registered design before the civil court, without the need to file an invalidation action or submit a new application. This mechanism parallels the patent right transfer claim available under the Korean Patent Act. 

Meanwhile, to protect third parties who have acted in good faith, the amended Design Protection Act provides that a bona fide user who had already been using the design prior to the transfer will be granted a non-exclusive license. This balances the need to swiftly restore the rightful owner's design rights while ensuring fair protection for existing users.

With these amendments, Korea aims to close gaps in the previous legal framework, prevent the creation and misuse of weak or fraudulent design rights, and foster an environment where genuine creators can secure and enforce their rights with greater confidence.