Editorial Staff

Shopping with a Trademark Lawyer

“What the hell are you doing?” was what I heard from my wife which jolted me, shook my phone and got the photo blurred. When I looked up, I realised that there were quite a few people staring at me. Sure this is India and there are hundreds of people stopping and staring at things at any given…


Copyright for Everyone

At the risk of over-simplifying things and shooting myself in the foot, copyright is the stream of intellectual property law that protects individual’s creative work. Take for example when you are enjoying a meal at a restaurant; if you were to stop and think about it, copyright exists in the music…


Getting Back Your .IN Domain Name - The INDRP Way

Trademarks are to the real world, what domain names are to the virtual world; Trademarks are vital to every business because they help consumers associate the goods or services provided by them to that particular trademark thereby building reputation. Similarly, the Internet is the first port of…


Start-up tips – Identifying Intellectual Property – Simplified

Following up on my earlier post about the IP clause in an employment agreement, where I mentioned the contents of the clause ought to define the Intellectual Property, I figured that, that would be a good aspect to cover – Identifying IP. I’ve attended many IP seminars and conferences conducted…


SNACKS will always be ‘some light food’ – IPAB denies Britannia the trademark SNAX

Appelant- M/s. Britannia Industries Limited Respondent- PepsiCo Inc. and the Deputy Registrar of Trade Marks Forum- Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) Facts Britannia Industries Limited had filed an application for the trademark SNAX, which they had claimed to have been using from 1965.…


Company gets an injunction against former employees for using internal client database.

Plaintiff- Vogueserve International Pvt. Limited Defendants - Rajesh Gosain & Ors Court- High Court of Delhi Coram – Justice Mukta Gupta Brief facts: The Plaintiff, Vogueserve International Private Limited, is an Indian company which was engaged in the business of trading of home textiles, home…


Start-up tips: Employment Agreements – Intellectual Property Clause Simplified

I thoroughly enjoyed the work, the adrenaline and the energy and I do know that entrepreneurs (like most individuals) are a little hesitant to engage lawyers and entrust them with their ideas. So I’m writing this post and hopefully few more along these lines, which will deal with general…


Trademark filings in India to get a tad more expensive

There are only two changes that have been notified which will amend the existing trademark rules and both relate to the increase in fees. The first change will be that the costs for filing a trademark application will increase to INR 4000 per class from the existing fee of INR 3500. The second…


Unauthorised use of trade mark - How would you remedy it in India?

In Utopia, I believe competition among similar businesses would be healthy and fair. However, in the real world, the Darwinian principle of survival of the fittest applies. We find that some wonderful businesses, with unique and sometimes well-established brands, end up in shambles because their…


Sugar and spice and everything NICE

A trademark that has been registered is valid for the goods or services that it has been applied for. If I file a trademark WONKZOO for legal services, aside from the fact that I may be committing professional suicide I need to decide which class of goods I have to file the trademark in. A…