Sound Board

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

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.

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.

In the Indian Patent system, an application for the grant of patent is  taken up for examination by the Indian Patent Office only when request for examination of the application is filed. Unless a request for examination is filed by either the Applicant or any other interested party there shall be no examination of a patent application. The time period for filing a request for examination shall be 48 months from the date of priority of the application or from the date of filing of the…

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…

The Delhi High Court in the matters of Dr. Reddys Laboratories Limited & Anr. Vs. The Controller of Patents & Ors. C.O. (CONN.IPD-PAT) No. 3/2021 with Thyssenkrupp Rothe Erde Germany GMBH Vs. The Controller of Patents & Anr. C.O. (CONN.IPD-PAT) 1/2022 and Elta Systems Ltd. Vs. The Controller of Patents C.A.(COMM.IPD-PAT) 169/2022 decided upon the question, of whether upon the abolishment of the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (“IPAB”), all High Courts can entertain revocation petitions…

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…

A trademark in Pakistan can be renewed for a period of 10 years. A request to renew a trademark in Pakistan should be made at any time during 6 months before the expiry of the trademark.

A trademark once registered in Sri Lanka, is valid for a period of 10 years from the date of filing of the application or from the date of last renewal, as the case maybe.