How to Determine Whether a Design Draft Is Original?

Suppose A steals B's design materials and drafts and publishes them. B takes out his own design drafts and materials to sue A, yet A in turn sues B for stealing his design drafts. How should this lawsuit be decided?

Take, for example, fashion design drafts, automobile design drafts, or drafts of other high-tech designs: the final version can be stolen, but the intermediate design process cannot be stolen. B can present all of his design drawings, from the earliest to the last, including even the discarded ones. These drawings represent the design process and embody his own design philosophy and line of thought. The thief can only steal a result; he cannot steal the process, nor the thinking and the philosophy behind it. As long as B can clearly articulate his philosophy and line of thought in a way that matches the drawings, it can be determined that B is the original creator. A, on the other hand, has no intermediate design drawings and no intermediate design process; regarding the final version, he cannot clearly explain the design thinking and philosophy. Even if he can guess at some of it, there will be loopholes. The judge will then rule that A stole from B, and B wins the case.

Furthermore, A and B can also be asked to demonstrate the making of the finished product in person. During the demonstration, the original creator will be technically skilled, precise in every detail, consistent with the design philosophy, and his work will be flawless. A, having no creative process and being unfamiliar with the design philosophy, will appear clumsy in the making, with obvious flaws, unable to fully embody the design philosophy. With such a comparison, the superiority is immediately apparent, and who the original creator is will become clear.

Details are the most revealing and best reflect wisdom. If the details cannot be explained clearly, it shows insufficient wisdom—the work may have been stolen, or borrowed as a reference, or it may be the product of sentiment and conjecture, something fabricated by consciousness. If there is no actual intermediate process, only a rough and vague result, then the origin of that result is suspect. Process and detail are the most trustworthy and best represent originality; they are the crystallization of the sweat of labor, something that cannot be stolen. If it is not so, then there is suspicion of theft.