Ballard Spahr’s Design Patents Team delivers practical guidance and deep experience to help clients protect the visual appeal and competitive edge of their products. Nationally recognized for our comprehensive patent services, we support companies from startups to global corporations—across industries such as retail, consumer products, technology, life sciences, medical devices, and more—from idea generation through commercialization.
Our attorneys combine technical backgrounds and advanced degrees in engineering, software, materials science, and related fields, paired with strong legal acumen. We recognize design patents as vital assets for product development and brand differentiation; our robust practice covers every aspect of design patents nationally and internationally.
Whether launching a breakthrough physical product, developing a digital interface, or integrating designs into a comprehensive IP strategy, we guide clients through each step of the design patent process to develop, prosecute, and enforce high-quality design patent portfolios.
Our Services
Design Patent Procurement and Portfolio Management
Preparation and prosecution of U.S. and international design patent applications across a wide range of products. Examples of products that we have recently pursued in design patent applications include the following:
| MEDICAL TECHNOLOGIES | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Clinical: Medical dressings |
Patient-facing: Electrode arrays |
Research: Tissue product packaging |
|
CONSUMER PRODUCTS |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Fashion Industry: Clothing |
Food and Beverage: Kitchen appliances |
Vehicles/Automotive: Children: Car seats |
|
Home/Decorative: Scent diffusers |
Sporting Goods: Firearms |
Electronics: Power supplies |
MANUFACTURING
Drainage equipment
Pipe couplings and fittings
Flooring products
Drill bits
Solar panels
Ventilation equipment
Pallets
Sprinklers
Equipment housings
Control panels
Gaskets
Railing
FILING STRATEGY
- Deep experience with identifying design embodiments of varying scope to maximize portfolio value and secure both broad and narrow design coverage.
- Particular experience with coordinating design and utility patent application filings for the same product.
- Extensive experience navigating foreign jurisdiction requirements, including key jurisdictions such as Australia, Canada, China, Europe (EUIPO), Japan, South Korea, and the United Kingdom.
- Experience with pursuing international design applications through the Hague System.
- Offer guidance on filing strategies that account for subtle differences in the filing and examination requirements of each country.
- Use of comprehensive appendices for supporting continuing design patent application filings in the United States.
- Comprehensive portfolio development for both individual product lines and large-scale companies with extensive domestic and global operations to create revenue and minimize competition.
- Counsel on maximizing commercial value by integrating design filings into business strategies.
- Counsel on the usage of design patents to prevent infringing sales online using takedown procedures.
- Work with global manufacturers and suppliers to develop novel product design solutions protected via coordinated worldwide filing strategies.
- Develop parallel filing approaches to enable rapid market entry for retail tech brands facing evolving competition.
- Coordination of design patent filings with trademark and trade dress strategies.
COMPETITIVE POSITIONING
- Analysis of competitor portfolios to identify potential filing strategies.
- Counseling on clearance/freedom-to-operate ahead of product launch.
PATENTABILITY EVALUATION AND ENFORCEMENT READINESS
- Conducting due diligence: assessment of validity and enforceability; strength-of-claim analysis; right-to-use studies; inventorship review.
- Opinion preparation regarding infringement risk or enforcement strategy prior to entering new markets.
Rankings and Recognition
15 Attorneys Recognized for Excellence
Managing IP, IP Stars, 2025
A Top-Tier National Practice
29 practices ranked in the highest tier nationally
Best Law Firms, 2026
A Leader in Patent Law
IAM Patent 1000: The World's Leading Patent Professionals, 2025
A Top 10 Patent Firm, North East
The Patent Lawyer, 2025