Sound Board

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

In a welcome move, the Indian Trademark Office (TMO) issued a public notice via Trade Marks Journal No. 2090 dated February 6, 2022, whereby the general public & IP practitioners were informed that 1. Applications for which a response to the examination report has not been filed within the prescribed time & 2. Applications that have received oppositions and for which the TMO has properly served the notice of opposition to the applicant but where no counter-statement has been filed with the TMO

Renewing a trademark registration in India is an important process for businesses to maintain the exclusivity of their brand and protect their intellectual property. It is essential for businesses to understand the process of trademark renewal and the importance of timely renewal in order to avoid any potential issues or disputes.

Trademark registration in India is a process that allows businesses to protect their brand and intellectual property. A trademark registration is valid for a period of 10 years and can be renewed after the expiration of the initial registration period of 10 years.

As patent lawyers, meeting deadlines can be crucial to the success of a patent application. Two of the most important deadlines one needs to be aware of while prosecuting patent applications in India are the deadline for filing a request for examination and the deadline for filing a response to the first examination report.

The Delhi High Court’s ruling in the case of Adobe Inc. v. Namase Patel and Ors. serves as a reminder of the importance of protecting trademarks and intellectual property rights on the internet. In this case, the court granted a permanent injunction in favour of the Plaintiff. The Court recognised Namase Patel as a habitual cyber squatter and awarded a sum of INR 2,00,01,000/- (approx. US$ 242,000) in damages against the defendant to act as a deterrent against such actions in the future. 

The Bombay High Court ruled in favour of the plaintiff, Pidilite Industries Ltd., who had filed a trademark infringement suit against the defendant for using the mark R-SEAL, which was allegedly similar to the plaintiff's registered mark M-SEAL. The Court found that the defendant had obtained the trademark by fraudulently concealing the existence of the plaintiff's prior registered marks from the Registrar of Trade Marks.

Justice Navin Chawla of the High Court of Delhi granted an ad interim ex party injunction in favour of the well-known actor Amitabh Bachchan in the suit Amitabh Bachchan v. Rajat Nagi & Ors., CS(COMM) 819/2022. The suit was filed by the veteran actor to protect his rights against the use of his likeness, voice, and pictures for the fake Kaun Bang Crorepati lottery fraud and myriad of other scams that were infringing upon his rights and unauthorisedly using his voice and pictures to defraud…

In an interesting turn of events, the Delhi High Court ruled in favour of Sujata Chaudhri of Sujata Chaudhri IP Attorneys in a trademark infringement, copyright infringement, and passing off suit restricting another intellectual property lawyer Swarupa Ghosh from using a deceptively similar logo.

The Court held that in an intellectual property case, where the matter affects not only the disputants but also the consumers and the plaintiff has already exhausted all possible recourses to amicably resolve the matter, then the plaintiff’s application seeking exemption from instituting pre-litigation mediation proceedings in accordance with section 12-A of the Act can be allowed. Thus, it can be said that in intellectual property cases, such reliefs are granted by Courts not merely for the…

Alternate methods of dispute resolution are amicable methods of resolving disputes without the intervention of courts. It decreases the burden of the courts and encourages settlement proceedings among the parties. Generally, Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) uses one or more neutral third parties who help the parties to communicate, discuss the differences and resolve the dispute. ADRs are a set of methods that enable individuals and group to maintain cooperation, and social order and provides…