Art. 110 RCD - Transitional provision
Commission on this subject, protection as a Community design shall not exist for a design which
constitutes a component part of a complex product used within the meaning of Article 19(1) for
the purpose of the repair of that complex product so as to restore its original appearance.
2. The proposal from the Commission referred to in paragraph 1 shall be submitted together
with, and take into consideration, any changes which the Commission shall propose on the same
subject pursuant to Article 18 of Directive 98/71/EC.
1 preliminary ruling
Judgment of 20 Dec 2017, C-397/16 (Acacia) 
Article 110(1) of Council Regulation (EC) No 6/2002 of 12 December 2001 on Community designs must be interpreted as meaning that the ‘repair’ clause in it does not make the exclusion of protection as a Community design for a design which constitutes a component part of a complex product which is used for the purpose of the repair of that complex product so as to restore its original appearance subject to the condition that the protected design is dependent upon the appearance of the complex product.
Article 110(1) of Regulation No 6/2002 must be interpreted as meaning that the ‘repair’ clause in it makes the exclusion of protection as a Community design for a design which constitutes a component part of a complex product which is used for the purpose of the repair of that complex product so as to restore its original appearance subject to the condition that the replacement part must have an identical visual appearance to that of the part which was originally incorporated into the complex product when it was placed on the market.
Article 110(1) of Regulation No 6/2002 must be interpreted as meaning that, in order to rely on the ‘repair’ clause contained in that provision, the manufacturer or seller of a component part of a complex product are under a duty of diligence as regards compliance by downstream users with the conditions laid down in that provision.
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