1998 U.S. Code
Title 17 - COPYRIGHTS
CHAPTER 13 - PROTECTION OF ORIGINAL DESIGNS
Sec. 1302 - Designs not subject to protection

Protection under this chapter shall not be available for a design that is—

(1) not original;

(2) staple or commonplace, such as a standard geometric figure, a familiar symbol, an emblem, or a motif, or another shape, pattern, or configuration which has become standard, common, prevalent, or ordinary;

(3) different from a design excluded by paragraph (2) only in insignificant details or in elements which are variants commonly used in the relevant trades;

(4) dictated solely by a utilitarian function of the article that embodies it; or

(5) embodied in a useful article that was made public by the designer or owner in the United States or a foreign country more than 1 year before the date of the application for registration under this chapter.

(Added Pub. L. 105–304, title V, §502, Oct. 28, 1998, 112 Stat. 2906.)

For termination of section by section 505 of Pub. L. 105–304, see Effective and Termination Dates note set out under section 1301 of this title.

This section is referred to in sections 1301, 1303 of this title.