This thesis is concerned with the study of foreign legal provisions for the protection of trade dress in order to compare with those of Thai laws for the purpose of appropriately amending them. The study shows that protection of trade dress under foreign legal provisions is subjected to trademark law both by statutory provisions and by judicial decisions. There are two compulsory elements to be met in order to meet to qualify for trade dress protection. Firstly, a trade dress, functioning as a trademark, must be distinctive. Secondly, a trade dress must be non-functional in character. The study indicates that there are various Thai laws related to trade dress protection, for instance, the Trademark Act B.E. 2534 (as amended (No.2) B.E. 2543), the Patent Act B.E. 2522 (as amended (No.3) B.E. 2542) and the Copyright Act B.E. 2537. The protection is granted pursuant to the characteristic prescribed by law applicable to the case. In the case of the Trademark Act B.E. 2534, the Act protects two kinds of trade dress, i.e. combination of colors and shapes of things. While distinctiveness is a major essential element to gain protection under the Act, non-functionality of trade dress is not a requirement. The Trademark Act B.E. 2534 should, therefore, be amended to include the requirement of the non-functionality characteristic to be one of the two essential elements for a trade dress in order to qualify for protection as well as to broaden the definition of "mark" by extending its scope to cover trade dress.
