Copyright law in Colombia provides protection for any original works that are the product of the human intellect. However, important business owners in the fashion design industry had been unable so far to find any copyright protection in Colombia for their designs (for example, garments, suitcases and shoes), given that the National Copyright Office (NCO) considered that these designs have to be protected through industrial property law mechanisms, and more specifically through industrial design rights.

In some cases, the advantages of copyright protection as opposed to industrial design protection are of the utmost relevance for fashion designers (for example, the territorial breath of the protection, the need for registration and the fees or rates payable among other things).

Given that we at Prieto & Carrizosa disagreed with the position adopted by the NCO, several weeks ago we filed with that agency a study wherein we pleaded about the legal grounds that allow for the protection of fashion design articles in Colombia not only through industrial design protection but also through copyright protection, and even through both systems in a cumulative manner.

Recently, as a result of our study the NCO issued Ruling No. 2005-5951 whereby this agency established the following (inter alia):

(i)That anybody may obtain protection for fashion design articles in Colombia under copyright law;
(ii)That anybody may obtain protection in Colombia for fashion design articles in a cumulative manner, both under copyright law and through the industrial design mechanism; and
(iii)That the tri-dimensional replication of a bi-dimensional design of a fashion article may constitute a derivative work in Colombia (for example: making a purse from the drawing of a purse).

As a consequence, the fashion design industry has earned a higher level of protection in Colombia: that afforded under copyright law.

Should you need any additional information, please call Santiago Márquez-Robledo at our offices.