International treaties and Brexit
The UK is a signatory to many key World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO) administered treaties, including the Paris Convention, the Patent Cooperation Treaty, the Berne Convention (copyright), the WIPO Copyright Treaty, the Hague Agreement (designs) and the Protocol to the Madrid Agreement (trade marks).
The EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement provides the legal framework for trade and cooperation between the UK and the EU following Brexit, including IP protection.
Trade marks
The UK was recently ranked in the top ten for global brand value in WIPO’s Global Innovation Index and number two in Brand Finance’s Global Soft Power Index 2024, a worldwide study on perceptions of nation brands.
Registered trade marks (and applications therefore) are governed by the Trade Marks Act 1994 (as amended). The UK is a member of the Madrid Protocol and party to the Trademark Law Treaty.
Patents
Patents are territorial rights. In general, exclusive rights are only applicable in the country or region in which a patent has been filed and granted, in accordance with the law of that country or region.
Designs
There are multiple mechanisms for protecting designs in the UK. Registered designs are available, and are governed by the Registered Designs Act 1949 (as amended), and the UK is also party to the Hague Agreement on designs. There are also two unregistered design rights available: UK unregistered design right (governed by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (as amended)) and UK supplementary unregistered design (introduced as part of the legislation arising from Brexit). Product designs may also be protected by copyright, provided certain conditions are met, but these are dealt with under the Copyright section in this guide.
Copyright
In the UK, copyright protects works of various forms, including original literary, dramatic, artistic and musical works; sound recordings, films and broadcasts; and typographical arrangements of published editions. Copyright protection is governed by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (as amended).
Confidential information and trade secrets
In the UK, confidential information may be protected by the common law duty of confidence and/or the Trade Secrets (Enforcement, etc.) Regulations 2018. In practice, protection afforded by these two mechanisms often overlaps, and supplements supplement confidentiality or non-disclosure obligations which may be contained in contracts. Both mechanisms allow rightsholders to seek remedies requiring the unauthorised discloser/recipient to cease any unauthorised use of the information (including any further authorised disclosure) and may require them to return or destroy copies thereof.
Database right
In the UK, databases may be protected by the database right arising under the Copyright and Rights in Databases Regulations 1997 (as amended). Databases may also be protected as literary works by copyright provided certain conditions are met, but these are dealt with under the Copyright section in this guide.
