WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION 
ORGANISATION MONDIALE DU COMMERCE 
ORGANIZACION MUNDIAL DEL COMERCIO 
Council for Trade-Related Aspects of 
Intellectual Property Rights IPIN/l/HRVIL/l 
29 May 2001 
(01-2674) 
Original: English/ 
anglais/ 
inglés 
MAIN DEDICATED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY 
LA WS AND REGULATIONS NOTIFIED UNDER 
ARTICLE 63.2 OF THE AGREEMENT 
CROATIA 
The present document reproduces the text1 of the Law on the Protection of Layout-Designs of 
Integrated Circuits, as notified by Croatia under Article 63.2 of the Agreement (see document 
IP/N/l/HRV/l). 
Conseil des aspects des droits de propriété 
intellectuelle qui touchent au commerce 
PRINCIPALES LOIS ET RÉGLEMENTATIONS CONSACRÉES À LA 
PROPRIÉTÉ INTELLECTUELLE NOTIFIÉES AU TITRE 
DE L'ARTICLE 63:2 DE L'ACCORD 
CROATIE 
Le présent document contient le textel de la Loi sur la protection des schémas de 
configuration de circuits intégrés, notifiée par la Croatie au titre de l'article 63:2 de l'Accord (voir le 
document IP/N/1/HRV/l). 
Consejo de los Aspectos de los Derechos de Propiedad 
Intelectual relacionados con el Comercio 
PRINCIPALES LEYES y REGLAMENTOS DEDICADOS A LA 
PROPIEDAD INTELECTUAL NOTIFICADOS EN VIRTUD 
DEL PA.RRAFO 2 DEL ARTICULO 63 DEL ACUERDO 
CROACIA 
En el presente documento se reproduce el texto 1 de la Ley de Protecci6n de los Esquemas de 
Trazado de Circuitos Integrados, notificado por Croacia en virtud deI parrafo 2 deI articula 63 deI 
Acuerdo (véase el documento IP/NIl/HRV Il). 
1 In English only. The text in the original language is available for consultation by interested 
Delegations at the WTO Secretariat.lEn anglais seulement. Les délégations intéressées peuvent consulter le 
texte dans sa langue d'origine, au Secrétariat de l'OMC./En inglés solamente. Las delegaciones interesadas 
podran consultar en la Secretaria de la OMC el texto en su idioma original. IPIN/l /HRV /L/l 
Page 2 
LA\V 
ON THE PROTECTION OF LAYOUT-DESIGNS OF INTEGRATED 
CIRCUITS 
1. General Provisions 
Article 1 
This Law shall regulate the protection of layout-designs of integrated circuits, 
hereinafter: topography. 
Article 2 
Integrated circuit means a product, in its final form or an intermediate form, in 
which the elements, at least one of vvhich is an active element, and sorne or aIl of the 
interconnections are integrally formed in and or on a piece of material and which is 
intended to perform an electronic function. 
Layout-design -topography -of an integrated circuit means the three­
dimensional disposition of elements, however expressed, at least one of which is an 
active element, and of sorne or aIl of the interconnections of an integrated circuit, or 
such a three-dimensional disposition of an integrated circuit prepared for 
manufacture. 
Creator of a topography is the natural person who has created the topography 
by his or her own creative intellectual work. 
The holder of the protected right means the natural person who or the legal 
entity which, in the procedure prescribed by this Law, has been granted the right to 
protection of the topography, or its successors in title. 
Commercial exploitation of the topography means the production, 
reproduction, importation, sale, leasing, rentaI or offering for any of these purposes, 
or any other way of commercial use of the topography or the integrated circuit 
produced on the basis of the topography. 
Il. Right to Protection 
Article 3 
The right to the protection of a topography under this Law shall belong to its 
creator as weIl as to his successors in title. 
If the topography has been created jointly by several persons, the right to 
protection of the topography shaH equally belong to aIl its creators, unless otherwise 
provided by a contract. 
If the topography has been created in the course of employment or is based on 
commission, the right to protection shall apply in favour of the creator' s employer or 
in favour of the ordering party, unless otherwise stipulated by the contract of 
employment or commission. 
The right to protection referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article shall 
belong to natura! persons who are nationa!s of the Republic of Croatia or to legal 
entities having their business seat in the territory of the Republic of Croatia. 
The right to protection referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article shall 
also belong to natura! persons who are not nationals of the Republic of Croatia, and to 
foreign legal entities having no residence in the territ ory of the Republic of Croatia, if 
this results from international treaties and conventions or from the application of the 
principles of reciprocity. Article 4 
The right to the protection of a topography shaIl be transferable. 
III. Protection Requireluents and Granting Procedure 
Article 5 
A topography shall be protected if it is original. IP/N/lIHRV/LIl 
Page 3 
A topography shall be deemed original if it is a resuIt of the creator's own 
intellectual activity and the creative activity of severaI persons, and has not been 
applied in the industry of semiconductors at the time of its creation. 
If a topography contains elements that have been appIied in the industry of 
semiconductors, the combination of these elements shall be protected, taken as a 
who le, only if it meets the requirements related to the originality stipulated by 
paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article. 
Article 6 
The State Intellectual Property Office of the Republic of Croatia (hereinafter: 
the Office) shall carry out the administrative granting procedure and shall keep the 
register of the protected topographies. 
Against the decisions made by the Office no appeal shall be allowed, 
nevertheless an administrative law-suit may be initiated. 
The register referred to in paragraph 1 ofthis Article shall be public. 
Article 7 
Topography granting procedure shall be initiated by filing to the Office a 
request for the grant of a topography and other relevant elements prescribed by this 
Law (hereinafter: topography application). 
A topography application shall contain: 
a) a request for the grant of a topography, 
b) indications allowing the identity of the applicant ta be established, 
c) sufficient data to contact the applicant or his representative, if any, by mail, 
d) written statement as to the date of the first commercial exploitation if that 
date occurred before the filing date of the application, 
e) short description of characteristics of the electronic function or functions of 
the integrated circuit, produced on the basis ofthat topography, 
f) data and supplements identifying the topography prescribed by Article 8 of 
this Law. 
By one application the protection of only one topography may be applied for. 
Article 8 
The material to be attached to the application under Article 7, paragraph 2, 
subparagraph f) of this Law, for the purpose of identifying the topography, shall 
consist of: 
a) drawings or photographs of layouts for the production of integrated circuit, 
or 
b) drawings or photographs of masks or the parts thereof for the production of 
the integrated circuit, or 
c) drawings or photographs of individuallayers of the integrated circuit. IPfN/I/HRV/L/l 
Page 4 
The following may be attached to the material referred to in paragraph 1 of 
this Article: data carriers, their printouts, the integrated circuit for the topography of 
which the protection is applied for, or a detailed description. 
The applicant has the right to mark any of the required materials or any of the 
parts thereof as a trade secret, in which case these parts sha1l be made available for 
inspection only in the procedure before the court concerning a lawsuit relating to the 
validity of the protected topography, or to the infringement of such protection. The 
applicant may submit to the Office also the copies of the application in which the 
parts referring to business information have been made unreadable. 
The Director of the Office shall enact the Regulations defining the form of the 
application, and the manner of drafting and filing it. 
Article 9 
The Office shall examine whether the application contains all the prescribed 
elements referred to in Article 7, paragraph 2, and Article 8, paragraph 1 of this Law 
with respect to the application filed, referred to in A11icle 7 paragraph 1 ofthis Law. 
If the application does not contain aIl the prescribed elements referred to in 
Article 7, paragraph 2 and Article 8, paragraph 1 of this Law, it shall be deemed 
incorrect and the Office shall invite the applicant to remedy all the deficiencies within 
a term which shall not be shorter than one month and not longer than three months. 
If the applicant remedies aIl the deficiencies within the prescribed time limit 
referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, the date of receipt of the correct application 
shall be deemed as the filing date of the application. 
If the applicant does not remedy aIl the deficiencies \vithin the time limit 
referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, the application shall be rejected by a 
decision. 
Article 10 
If the application contains aIl the requirements referred to in Article 7, 
paragraph 2, and Article 8, paragraph 1 ofthis Law, the applicant, as the holder of the 
protected right, shaH be issued a decision on the grant of the right to a topography by 
the Office and the protected topography shaH be entered in the register of 
topographies kept by the Office, and the data from the register shall be published in 
the Office Official Gazette. 
Article Il 
For each topography the following data shaH be entered ln the register of 
protected topographies: 
a) registration number of the protected topography, 
b) filing date of the application, 
c) date and number of the decision on the entry into the register, 
d) title of the topography, 
e) data on the applicant: the family name and the first name, as weIl as the 
residence, and the nationality of the applicant, if it is a natural person, or the name 
and business seat of the applicant if it is a legal entity, whereat the data concerning 
legal entities shaH correspond to those contained in the court register, 
f) data on the creator: the family name, the first name and the title; the 
indication of the town and the country shall be sufficient, IPIN/lIHRVIL/l 
Page 5 
g) date of the tirst commercial exploitation of the topography, if the 
topography has already been commercially exploited, 
h) data on a representative, if any, 
i) data on changes referring to: the transfer of the right, licence, cancellation, 
termination of protection and other changes relevant for the legal status of ·the 
protected topography. 
The Director to the Office shall enact the Regulations prescribing the form, 
and the manner of keeping the register. 
Article 12 
The acts performed in the course of the adlninistrative granting procedure as 
\vell as the maintenance of the rights in effect, shall be subject to the payment of the 
administrative fees and procedural charges in compliance with the special regulations. 
Should the prescribed administrative fees and procedural charges not be paid 
within the prescribed time limit, the application shall be deemed withdrawn, and the 
granted right shall cease to be valid. 
Article 13 
The decision on the grant of the right to a topography shall be declared null 
and void if the following has been established: 
a) that the topography is not original, 
b) that the application was filed by a natural person or a legal entity not 
entitled to the protection, 
c) that the application \-vas not filed \-vithin the prescribed terms referred to in 
Article 20 of this Law, 
d) that the identification of the protected topography is not possible on the 
basis of layouts relating to it. 
The procedure relating ta the declaration of the decision on the grant of the 
right to a topography null and void may be initiated by the Office ex officio, on the 
proposaI of any naturai persan or legal entity or by the state attorney on the grounds 
prescribed in paragraph 1, subparagraphs a), b), c) and d) of this Article, during the 
entire duration of the protection. 
IV. Effects of Protection and Limitations 
Article 14 
The holder of the right ta a protected topography has the exclusive right of its 
cOlnmerciai exploitation, including the right to allow or prohibit the following acts: 
a) reproduction of the topography, 
b) importation, sale or other forms of putting into circulation the topography 
or the integrated circuit containing the protected topography, as weIl as the products 
incorporating the integrated circuit containing the protected topography. 
The exclusive rights referred to in paragraph 1 ofthis Article shall not apply to 
the concept, process, system or the technology of production of the topography, or 
any inforn1ation stored in the integrated circuit, but to the topography as such. IPIN/l/HRV/L/l 
Page 6 
Article 15 
Without the consent of the holder of the right to a topography the following 
shall be permitted: 
a) reproduction of the protected topography for non-commercial purposes, 
b) reproduction of the protected topography for the purposes of analysing or 
assessing concepts, processes, systems and technologies contained in the topography, 
or for the needs of education or research, and 
c) commercial exploitation of a new topography which has been created on the 
basis of research and analysis of the protected topography but is deemed original 
and a result of personal creative effort of its creator and is not known from everyday 
use in the industry of semiconductors. 
Article 16 
A person vvhose rights resulting from the protected topography have been 
infringed may require, beside the payment for damages, the ordering of measures for 
preventing further infringement of his protected rights. 
A person infringing the rights arising from the protected topography shall be 
liable for the damage incurred, in accordance with the general principles on the 
payment for damages. 
Provisions referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article shall also apply to the 
legal successor of the protected topography. 
Article 17 
A person who cOlnmercially exploits an integrated circuit with a protected 
topography without knowing or having no reason to assume that it is a protected 
topography shall not be prohibited to commercially exploit such an integrated circuit. 
The holder of the right to the protected topography 111ay demand, in writing, 
from the person referred to in paragraph 1 ofthis Article, the payment for damages for 
the cOlnlnercial exploitation of the protected topography, the amount of which shaIl 
depend on the extent of its commercial exploitation. The payment for damages can be 
demanded as of the date on which the person referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article 
has learnt, or had reason to believe, that it was a protected topography. 
The paylnent for damages referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article shall be set 
by the holder of the protected topography and the person referred to in paragraph 1 of 
this Article in an agreement. Should no agreement be reached, the amount to be paid 
for damages shall be decided by the competent court. 
The provision referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article shaIl also apply to the 
successor in title ofthat person. 
The right to the commercial exploitation referred to in paragraph 1 of this 
Article shall be limited to importation, sale or any other form of putting into 
circulation the integrated circuit products or other products containing the protected 
topography, and this right shaH apply to the topography or products available at the 
time of receipt of the demand referred to in paragraph 2 ofthis Article. 
Article 18 
The holder of the protected topography may not prohibit offering for sale, sale 
-and use of the products wh en the protected topography, integrated circuit containing 
the protected topography or the product incorporating such an integrated circuit have IPlNllIHRV/L/l 
Page 7 
been placed to the market in the Republic of Croatia by the right holder or with his 
express consent. 
V. Commencement and Duration of Protection 
Article 19 
Exclusive rights shall come into effect on the earlier of the following dates: 
a) on the filing date of the application to the Office in compliance with Article 
7 ofthis Law, if the topography has not been comlnercially exploited, or 
b) on the date of the first commercial exploitation of the topography, 
notwithstanding its worldwide place of occurrence. 
Article 20 
The exclusive rights shall cease to be valid upon the expiration of a ten year 
period counting from the earIier of the following dates: 
a) end of the calendar year in which the first commercial exploitation of the 
topography has started anywhere in the world, or 
b) end of the calendar year in which the regular application has been filed. 
The exclusive rights shall cease even before the expiration of the period 
referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article if the prescribed fees and procedural charges 
have not been paid, or if the holder of the right waives his right in writing. 
Exceptionally the exclusive rights shall expire within fifteen years as from the 
creation of the topography if it has not been exploited comn1ercially. 
During the time of validity of the exclusive rights, the holder of the protected 
topography shall be entitled to mark the integrated circuit by capital T. 
Article 21 
The application referred to in Article 7 of this Law shall not be filed after the 
expiration of a two-year period as from the date on which the first cOlnmercial 
exploitation of the topography has started. 
VI. Transitional and Final Provisions 
Article 22 
Corresponding provisions of the Patent La\v shall apply to the provisions on 
the representation, on the holders of joint rights, on the procedure for the declaration 
of the decision on the grant of the right to a topography null and void, on the 
deadIines for bringing charges on the grounds of the infringement of the right, on the 
transfer of the right, and on licence agreements. 
Article 23 
The provisions of this Law shaH apply only to the topographies created after 
its entry into force. 
Article 24 
The Director of the Office shall define, by the Regulations, the matters 
referred to in Article 8 and Article Il of this Law. The Regulations shaH be enacted 
up to the date prescribed for the application ofthis Law. IP/N/1/HRV /LII 
Page 8 
Article 25 
This Law shall enter into force on the eighth day as from the date of its 
publication in "Narodne novine" -the Official Gazette of the Republic of Croatia, and 
shaH be applied as from January 1,2000.