Designs & Copyright Review of the Year

Introduction

2024 saw the conversation around artificial intelligence and copyright continue to escalate, with both policymakers and the courts beginning to grapple with the legal implications of AI development and use.

The UK Government launched a consultation on a new copyright exception for text and data mining, aimed at striking a balance between promoting AI innovation and protecting creative industries. At the same time, the first major UK case between AI developers and rightsholders—Getty Images v Stability AI—moved closer to trial, raising important questions around the use of protected content in training AI models.

As for Design law, the most notable development was the Court of Appeal’s decision in Marks & Spencer v Aldi, offering helpful guidance for practitioners on various matters such as design corpus analysis when assessing infringement. On the legislative front, the EU approved revisions to the Design Directive and Community Design Regulation, with changes aimed at modernising the regime to reflect the realities of the digital age.

While some areas remain in flux, 2024 laid important groundwork for how both copyright and designs will be shaped in the years to come.

We hope that you find the review an interesting read and we look forward to 2025 bringing more of the same.