Disclosure, subject matter and infringement in case of unregistered EU designs

Abstract On 11 September 2024, the Court of The Hague issued a decision (Dutch Design v Makro), which relates to asserted claims for alleged infringement of unregistered European Union (EU) designs. The Court found the claimed unregistered EU designs valid and infringed but denied copyright subsistence. Unfortunately, the decision, eventually and implicitly granting partial and parallel protection for a ‘label’, seems to depart from established EU design law standards, including jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union (C-123/20), and thus opens up a Pandora’s box.