3. When should a creation be protected by IP?

Copyright arises as soon as the work is created, without any formal deposit. You must, however, ensure that you can prove a definite date of creation (for example, by means of a Soleau envelope, a bailiff's or notary's report). These means enable you to provide proof of your creation, and thus to assert this anteriority in the event of a dispute, but they do not constitute a title of ownership, which does not exist for this type of right. Ownership in this field is generally only official when it is claimed in litigation, and recognized as such by judges.

Other IP rights must be registered in order to be protected (in France, with the INPI), with the exception of unregistered Community designs, whose protection is acquired by first disclosing the creation within the territory of the European Union (subject to compliance with the same legal conditions as those applicable...