5.1.7. Applicant name: Trust-Trustee

A trust is a legal relationship under which a person or entity (the trustee) holds property or rights for the benefit of one or more beneficiaries, or for the advancement of a particular purpose, such as a charity.

A trust is not a legal person and therefore cannot be an applicant for, or the registered owner of, a design. Instead, the applicant must be the trustee or another legal person entitled to own the design.

Under s 117, the Registrar cannot receive notice of a trust. Accordingly, no notice of a trust, whether express, implied or constructive, may be entered in the Register.

References to a trust in an applicant name should generally be avoided, as they may affect the identification of the legal person entitled to be the registered owner of the design. If the applicant name appears to identify a trust rather than a legal person, a written notice should be issued seeking clarification.

Examples include:

• 'Doe Family Trust';

• 'Trustees for the Doe Family Trust';

• 'Jane Doe, trustee for Doe Family Trust'; and

• ‘Jane Doe Pty Ltd as trustee for the Doe Family Trust’.

Section 117 does not prevent a trust being referred to in an address for service, as address details do not determine entitlement to be the registered owner of the design.