A firm of Birmingham intellectual property specialists which advised Vax in its landmark legal victory over rival Dyson says the decision is a "shot in the arm for innovation."

Forresters, in conjunction with EMW solicitors, advised Vax - who have been based in the West Midlands since they were founded in 1979 - in a legal wrangle brought by James Dyson over the issue of a registered design.

Dyson had gone to the Court of Appeal after a judge had ruled last year that Vax's Mach Zen vacuum cleaner was not close to his DC02 model. Last week Dyson was reported to be "furious" after the judgement confirmed that Vax had not copied Dyson's design.

Graham Dodd, the senior associate responsible for the case at Forresters, said Vax had reason to be very proud that they had stuck to their principles.

"In the end, this came down to an issue of pure design, rather than the principles of design," said Mr Dodd.

"This is a real shot in the arm for UK design and innovation, noting that nearly all of Vax's R&D is done in this country. What we were able to do was offer clear, sensible and practical advice in relation to the design which, at all stages, the judges involved agreed with.

"The judges were of the opinion, as clearly were we, that these were very different designs which created a different overall impression. Indeed, the lead judge went so far as to highlight a number of important distinguishing features, concluding that Vax's 'rugged, angular and industrial' machine was, overall, quite different to the DC02."

Vax managing director, Simon Lawson, said: "I am proud of our UK-based design and innovation team - performance is everything - and in the Mach Zen they have created a vacuum cleaner that is quieter and more powerful than any other multi-cyclonic cylinder on the market."