Layout-Designs of Integrated Circuits Act 2000 · Updated to 1 Jan 2006 · Part II · Protection of Layout-Designs
7. Right holder of layout-design
Feedback & supportSubject to any agreement to the contrary, the right holder of a layout design shall be determined as follows:
right holder
“right holder” means the person that is to be regarded as the beneficiary of the protection referred to in section 9;
if the layout-design is not created in pursuance of a commission or in the course of employment, the creator of the layout-design is the right holder;
if the layout-design is created in pursuance of a commission, the person who commissioned the layout-design is the right holder; and
if the layout-design is created by an employee in the course of his employment, the employer is the right holder.
A person can be a right holder even if he shares the right in the layout-design with a person who is not a qualifying person.
layout-design
“layout-design” means the three-dimensional disposition, however expressed, of the elements of an integrated circuit and some or all of the interconnections of the integrated circuit or such a three-dimensional disposition prepared for an integrated circuit intended for manufacture;
If the right in a layout-design is held by more than one person—
a reference in this Act to the right holder is a reference to all the right holders; and
any requirement for the consent of a right holder requires the consent of all the right holders.
If a layout-design is owned by more than one person and such persons include a person who is not a right holder within the meaning of this Act, the protection specified in this Act shall only apply in relation to that part of the layout-design that is created by the right holder and all references in this Act to a protected layout-design shall be construed accordingly.
protected layout-design
“protected layout-design” means a layout-design that is protected under section 5;