Sound Board

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

When a trademark application is filed and subsequently accepted by the Trademark Office, it doesn't mean an immediate registration. Instead, the accepted application is published in the Trademarks Journal for third parties, who might have concerns or disputes about the trademark, to come forward and oppose the application.

In a recent order passed on August 3, 2023, the Delhi HC in Ravi Manchanda v. Registrar of Trademarks rather scathingly pointed out a glaring error in an order passed by the Senior Examiner of Trademarks. In a case that was described as ‘sui-generis’, the Hon’ble Judge drew attention to a critical discrepancy – the absence of the impugned "order" in the communication sent to the concerned parties.

The case involved a dispute between Wipro Enterprises Ltd., the registered owner of the trademark "Chandrika," in respect of goods covered in class 3, and M/S Mariyas Soaps and Chemicals, the registered owner of the trademark "Chandra" in respect of goods covered in class 3. The court's ruling sheds light on the rights and limitations of registered trademark owners and the grounds for seeking relief in cases of similarity between registered marks.

The Copyright & Design Section operating under the Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India by Public Notice dated July 24, 2023 has addressed concerns surrounding the alleged collection of royalties by Copyright Societies for musical performances and sound recordings during marriage functions.

In this article, we delve into the intricacies of the Calvin Klein case, exploring the Court's findings, and the implications of such actions on brand reputation and consumer trust. The plaintiff's trademark "Calvin Klein" was established and adopted in 1967, deriving its name from the founder. Since its inception, the plaintiff has extensively utilized both "Calvin Klein" and the abbreviated form "CK."

As patent attorneys, adhering to deadlines is pivotal for the success of a patent application. In India, two critical deadlines to bear in mind while prosecuting patent applications are those for filing a request for examination and responding to the first examination report.

Charter 4 Corp, the plaintiff, claimed to have adopted the 'Supreme' mark back in 1994 in the United States and had been using it in India since 2006, gaining popularity among Indian customers. The company boasted over 700 global registrations for the mark 'Supreme', and they had also filed applications for their 'Supreme' red-box device mark in India.

Kamdhenu Limited filed an appeal against a decision of the Registrar of Trademarks, who had dismissed their application to have their trademark 'KAMDHENU' included in the "List of Well-Known Trademarks." The Registrar's rejection was the absence of an affidavit along with the supporting evidence to establish the well-known status.

Practitioners have long wished for a separate IP division in High Courts. With the abolishment of the Intellectual Property Appellate Board in 2021, cases previously filed with or pending before the IPAB have been transferred to the High Courts. It then became imperative to establish a separate IP division in the High Courts. Following this objective, the High Court of Madras established an Intellectual Property committee to devise the necessary procedures. Subsequently, based on the…

The Controller General of Patents, Designs & Trade Marks (CGPDTM) has taken recent initiatives to clear backlogs in trademark prosecution and opposition matters, and a public notice was issued on February 6, 2023 encapsulating a gargantuan list of trademark application numbers that are said to pertain those applications that could be “deemed to be abandoned” as per the provisions of law. The said list was published along with Trademark Journal No: 2090, and the Office has been simultaneously…