Copying a design or plans

^woody^ · 7 May 2012

Really for those who draw plans ....

Has anyone discovered that one of your designs has been copied by another designer?

I got asked to quote for some extension plans, and by all accounts I was the last of a few people to visit, and I came up with some ideas which the homeowner was very interested in and specifically said that no-one else had mentioned.

I put some sketches in with the quote - which I know was one of, if not the cheapest

Move forward a few months, and low and behold an RIBA Architect has submitted plans for planning with my exact design

I feel a claim coming on

noseall · 7 May 2012

I thought you designer types copied and pasted generic details all the time then just fed 'em into your CAD.

Inky Pete · 7 May 2012

You gave the client your ideas and opinions freely. There was no contractual relationship, and certainly no confidentiality clause.

There's nothing to stop them from going to someone else and saying that they want this, that, or the other.

If your quote was the cheapest and someone else got the job then there must be another reason you didn't get it!

^woody^ · 7 May 2012

Inky Pete said:
You gave the client your ideas and opinions freely. There was no contractual relationship, and certainly no confidentiality clause.

Not exactly.

I was asked to propose a design to overcome certain issues and meet the homeowners requirement, and to quote on that

Presumably the others did the same and came up with something different

The homeowner obviously liked my design, which was by no means standard, and I even included a prominent copyright notice on the drawing

There does not have to be a contractual relationship for copyright or IP infringement, in any case it was the Architect who infringed the copyright not the homeowner who I have no contractual relations with.

But I have since discovered that an injunction preventing the thing being build is also possible

^woody^ · 7 May 2012

noseall said:
I thought you designer types copied and pasted generic details all the time then just fed 'em into your CAD.

Thats so you builder types dont get confused

Many do that I know. Unfortunately, it seems that I only get jobs which are none standard and I have to redraw most things

RonnyRaygun · 7 May 2012

^woody^ said:
Move forward a few months, and low and behold an RIBA Architect has submitted plans for planning with my exact design

I feel a claim coming on

It's a bit cheeky isn't it?

Reminds me of a job I did a few months back...
A client came to us with a structural scheme for a pair of new build houses...said he thought the design was OTT and could we do something a bit simpler?

My boss brought me the drawings (done by a well known firm) and told me to copy them, but leave out the wind posts

That's what I call engineering

freddiemercurystwin · 7 May 2012

^woody^ said:
Unfortunately, it seems that I only get jobs which are none standard and I have to redraw most things

I feel your pain, I've got one client, a builder, who only ever uses me when the jobs really awkward!

AlexaCollinsDesign · 8 May 2012

That's really annoying.

I suppose the difficulty will be whether or not you can prove that it's your design and how much money you want to spend in legal costs proving that the architect didn't come up with the same idea as you, independently.

Having been slightly burned on one job, these days although I'll happily give out ideas, I don't part with anything on paper until I have some level of financial agreement with the client.

I would have thought it was worth a solicitor's letter as a shot across the bows?

jeds · 8 May 2012

^woody^ said:
I feel a claim coming on

Hmmn. I feel a biting of a bullet coming on.

^woody^ · 8 May 2012

I think that the most likely scenario is that the homeowner showed my design to a previous or subsequent firm and said "I want this".

The design is a bit non-standard, so I think that another person coming up with the exact design is remote

I am not sure if it's worth a Solicitor taking this on a no-win no fee basis, otherwise I think I'll go via the small claims track and do it myself - and there will be no legal fees, just the initial admin fee

^woody^ · 8 May 2012

jeds said:
Hmmn. I feel a biting of a bullet coming on.

I don't know John.

It is annoying to think that an RIBA Architect would do this, and as a side issue his drawings are really crap so I am thinking how the hell did he get the job!

chapeau · 11 May 2012

No idea why being a RIBA member makes any difference, they as are crooked as any honest member of society. When anybody uses a stock copy of plans they will almost certainly be using a licenced copy.

If you designed the plans then you have the copyright and it's not for the homeowner to pass them on even if they paid for them (as I assume you are self employed). If somebody nicked your ideas then that is piracy. If he came up with them independently then it is not. If his drawings are rubbish then he might say he never copied them. Up to you how you proceed, if it's as you said you would win, not sure whether it's worth the hassle. Writing to RIBA might be enough to maximise his hassle while minimising yours. Of course professional bodies really exist to protect their members and not discipline them.

jeds · 11 May 2012

^woody^ said:
jeds said:

Hmmn. I feel a biting of a bullet coming on.

Click to expand...

I don't know John.

It is annoying to think that an RIBA Architect would do this, and as a side issue his drawings are really crap so I am thinking how the hell did he get the job!

I do agree but I just think it would be very difficult to prove anything concrete. My guess is the client passed your design ideas on to the architect and told him that's what I want. In fact that is obviously what happened or else how would the architect have known about your ideas? What you don't know is how he did that. I doubt he would have passed on your sketch drawings with your identification on it. More likely he would have copied them over to plain paper or re-sketched them himself. Either way the architect is just going to say; 'I knew nothing about woody's designs, I simply worked up the clients design instructions'.

I just think a formal claim would be difficult to pursue and there's too strong a chance that you'll get nothing out of it at the end. So the sensible thing is to bite the bullet and move on. However annoying.

Willa · 14 May 2012

Are you a member of any professional group like the FSB? If so give them a call as most offer free legal advice. It is a shame that this has happened to you, as I and many others appreciate the advice you give willingly for free. Hope it works out.
Just a thought, if you are 100% it has been copied, I presume you would know the staff on the council for the planning and BC departments....not that I would suggest anything untoward or unprofessional.

^woody^ · 14 May 2012

Willa said:
I presume you would know the staff on the council for the planning and BC departments....not that I would suggest anything untoward or unprofessional.

Thanks for that Willa.

I don't think that there is any chance of it not passing planning ... after all its such a great design. lol

I'll see if I can get some legal opinion shortly to see if it can be taken on a no-win, no fee claim. Alternatively, for the sake of £70 court fee, I may well just chance my arm and do it myself

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Copying a design or plans

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