Press Release: European Commission asks ten Member States to implement Directive on the legal protection of designs

The European Commission decided on 1 July 2002 to send formal requests to Belgium, Germany, Greece, Spain, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Finland and Sweden to implement into their national law Directive 98/71/EC on the legal protection of designs. When the Directive was adopted in 1998, Member States themselves agreed to implement it no later than 28 October 2001. Should the Member States concerned fail to give a satisfactory reply within two months, the European Commission may refer the matter to the European Court of Justice.