Sound Board

Our thoughts and views on the practice of Intellectual Property in India and around the world.

The phrase “I’ll sue you” is one that many people love to use, without actually giving too much thought to whether legal action can in fact be taken and if so, whether it’ll be maintainable in a Court of Law. Lawyers take it a step further (in an attempt to make their client’s happy) by telling the other party that legal action will be taken against them if they do not comply or do what is necessary to be done. As a lawyer, it is pertinent to make sure your client is in the clear before…

The Gujarat High Court in a recent case has reaffirmed that trade channels, class of purchasers, the extent of reputation of the parties and all the other relevant factors play a crucial role in determining whether there has been an infringement or not. The decision was the result of taking into consideration the following facts;

I’m sure many of us, lawyers and trademark owners, would have come across examination reports that have required association between your mark and the applicant’s other marks (mostly). In cases where the mark that we have to associate it with has crossed its date of validity or has been withdrawn by the applicant, what happens then? While the law is silent on this point, the law of logic will kick in. Here I am going to mention few provisions of the law which in effect will say that both the…