Sections 15-16 explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Section 15 draws the line between copyright and design law: a registered design has no copyright, and an unregistered design that could have been registered loses its copyright once an article carrying it has been reproduced more than fifty times by an industrial process. Section 16 closes the door on copyright-like claims outside the Act. If you are a product designer deciding how to protect a pattern, legal consultation before mass production can save a right you would otherwise lose.
Section 15(1): copyright does not subsist in a design registered under the Designs Act, 2000. Section 15(2): copyright in a design capable of being registered but not registered ceases as soon as an article to which it has been applied is reproduced more than fifty times by an industrial process by the owner, or by any other person with the owner's licence. Section 16: no one has copyright or a similar right in a work except under the Act or another law in force; a right to restrain a breach of trust or confidence is not removed.
Section 15: what the printed text says
The section heading refers to designs "registered or capable of being registered" under the Designs Act, 2000 (16 of 2000). The footnotes record that the words "Indian Patents and" were omitted in 1984 and that "Designs Act, 2000" was substituted for "Designs Act, 1911" in 2012.
| Sub-section | Rule | Practical meaning |
|---|---|---|
| (1) | "Copyright shall not subsist under this Act in any design which is registered under the Designs Act, 2000" | If you register the design, protection comes from design law, not from copyright |
| (2) | Copyright in a design capable of being registered but not so registered "shall cease as soon as any article to which the design has been applied has been reproduced more than fifty times by an industrial process by the owner of the copyright or, with his licence, by any other person" | An unregistered design can enjoy copyright only until the fiftieth-plus industrial copy |
Reading sub-section (2) closely
The text contains several conditions, and each one narrows when the copyright is lost.
- The design must be capable of being registered. If it could not be registered, the sub-section does not apply.
- The design must not in fact be registered. A registered design is under sub-section (1).
- An article to which the design has been applied. The test counts articles carrying the design, not copies of a drawing.
- More than fifty times. The figure printed is "more than fifty times"; fifty exactly does not end the copyright, the fifty-first does.
- By an industrial process. The Act does not define "industrial process" in the text we read; section 2 does not define it.
- By the owner, or with his licence, by any other person. Copies made by an infringer without licence are not counted in the words of the sub-section.
- Ceases "as soon as". There is no grace period.
Example. Kavita Shah draws a floral pattern for ceramic tiles and does not register it as a design. She has 40 tiles printed by a factory. Copyright continues. When the factory prints the fifty-first tile to her order, copyright in the pattern ceases under section 15(2), because the pattern was applied to an article reproduced more than fifty times by an industrial process with her licence. The text does not say that the artwork on paper loses copyright in other contexts; the cessation is under this Act for the design as applied.
The text is silent on how the number of copies is proved, and on whether copies made abroad count. Do not assume either way.
Section 15 in the context of your protection strategy
| Option | Effect under section 15 |
|---|---|
| Register the design | Copyright does not subsist (15(1)); protection is under design law |
| Do not register; produce a handful of articles | Copyright subsists until more than fifty industrial reproductions |
| Do not register; mass produce | Copyright ceases at the fifty-first industrial reproduction |
| Artistic work not capable of being registered as a design | Section 15(2) does not apply by its terms |
Many product businesses face this choice. Our guide on rights conferred by design registration and the comparison of design, patent and copyright explain how designs and copyright overlap for products.
Section 16: no copyright except as provided in this Act
Section 16 reads: "No person shall be entitled to copyright or any similar right in any work, whether published or unpublished, otherwise than under and in accordance with the provisions of this Act or of any other law for the time being in force, but nothing in this section shall be construed as abrogating any right or jurisdiction to restrain a breach of trust or confidence."
Four points:
- A closed system. Copyright and similar rights come only from the Act or another law in force. A contract can create obligations between parties, but section 16 says the right in the work is not something a person can claim outside the law.
- "Any other law for the time being in force". The statute allows other laws to confer rights, so section 16 is not a bar to, for example, design law.
- "Whether published or unpublished". Common-law style claims of copyright in unpublished works are not preserved.
- Breach of trust or confidence. The saving is for the right or jurisdiction to restrain a breach of trust or confidence. Confidential ideas, drafts and unpublished material can be protected through that route even where no copyright exists.
The text does not describe the remedy for breach of confidence; section 16 only saves it. No case law is stated here.
Example. A consultant hears a client's unpublished business plan in a pitch. Copyright in an idea is not claimed under the Act; section 16 does not remove the client's right to restrain a breach of trust or confidence.
What the sections do not say
- They do not define "design". The Designs Act, 2000 does that; this article does not reproduce it.
- They do not set a fee or form. Design registration is under the Designs Act, 2000, not under this Act.
- They are not touched by the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021 or by the Jan Vishwas Acts. Neither section is listed.
- They do not say what counts as "similar right". The phrase is used without definition.
Practical points
- Decide before you scale. Register the design before industrial production begins if you want design protection.
- Count carefully. Track industrial copies made by you and by licensees; both count.
- Do not rely on contract alone. Section 16 says copyright arises under law, not by agreement.
- Keep confidential material confidential. Mark and limit access; the breach of confidence saving is separate from copyright.
Need help deciding how to protect a design?
Whether a product pattern should be registered as a design or left to copyright depends on your production plans. Our legal consultation team can review the design, the production volume and the likely timeline, and advise you before you reach the fifty-copy point.
Key takeaways
- No copyright subsists under the Act in a registered design (15(1)).
- Copyright in an unregistered but registrable design ceases after more than fifty industrial reproductions of articles carrying it, by the owner or a licensee (15(2)).
- The count is of articles reproduced by an industrial process, not of drawings.
- Section 16 allows copyright only under the Act or another law, while saving the right to restrain breach of trust or confidence.
- Neither section is amended by the 2021 or Jan Vishwas Acts.
Read next
- Section 14: meaning of copyright
- Section 19A: disputes over assignment of copyright
- Design vs patent vs copyright: which protection for your product
Disclaimer: Based on the Copyright Act, 1957 as amended up to 2012, read with the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021 and the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Acts of 2023 and 2026, as consulted on 1 October 2026. Forms, fees and procedure are set by the Copyright Rules, 2013 as amended from time to time. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.