Insights
Practical perspectives on protecting, managing and enforcing intellectual property across India and the subcontinent.
Raja Pannir Selvam · 7 July 2020
Voluntary Cancellation of a Trademark Registration in India
Sometimes an owner wants to give up a registered mark — often under a settlement or coexistence agreement. How to voluntarily cancel a trademark registration in India: the request, the mandatory affidavit, and the current timeline.
2 July 2020
Scrutiny Reports and Discrepancy Notices from the Trade Marks Office
When the Trade Marks Office finds a document missing or a request filed on the wrong form, it issues a discrepancy notice (scrutiny report). What triggers one, the 30-day deadline to reply, and why they can arrive even after registration.
Archana Priyadharshini · 1 July 2020
Author vs Owner: Who Really Holds the Copyright? (Section 17)
The author is usually the first owner of copyright — but employment, commissions and consultancy blur that line. How Section 17 and cases like V.T. Thomas v. Malayala Manorama decide ownership, and why a written agreement matters.
26 June 2020
'Magic Masala': Why ITC Couldn't Stop Nestlé (Descriptive Marks)
ITC's 'Magic Masala' couldn't stop Nestlé's 'Magical Masala' — the Madras High Court held 'Magic' and 'Masala' are laudatory/generic and common to trade, so no one can monopolise them. A lesson on descriptive marks and taglines.
25 June 2020
FAQs on 'Use' of a Trademark in India
In India's common-law system, 'use' of a mark decides registration, opposition and enforcement. What counts as use, whether goods must physically exist here, and how trans-border reputation fits — answered.
Raja Pannir Selvam · 15 June 2020
A Patent-Practice Tip Worth Sharing: Rule 90 vs Rule 94 Forms
A Controller's courtesy call flagged a common filing slip: amendment requests filed under the wrong Rule, attracting a higher fee. A 'pay it forward' note on which forms to use for Rule 90 (transfer) versus Rule 94 (name/address) amendments in Indian patents.
Nikhil Srivastava · 8 June 2020
Trading Trademarks: Assignments, Mergers and Transmissions in India
A trademark is a business asset that can be sold, merged or transmitted — but the change must be recorded with the Registry. The four scenarios, the documents, stamp duty, and the fees.
Raja Pannir Selvam · 22 May 2020
Sri Lanka and the Madrid Protocol: A Long-Delayed Accession
Sri Lanka agreed to join the Madrid Protocol in 2017 and is still outside it. Where the enabling bill has got to, why the statute is the real obstacle, what WIPO's own 2026–2028 outlook says, and how to plan a regional programme that does not quietly leave Sri Lanka out.
Raja Pannir Selvam · 22 May 2020
Trademark Protection in the Maldives: FAQs on the Cautionary Notice
Until 11 November 2026 the Maldives has no trademark registry — protection is secured by publishing a cautionary notice. How the system works, what information you need, how to renew, and what the incoming Trademarks Act changes.
12 May 2020
COVID-19 and IP Deadlines: How the Courts Extended Limitation
When the pandemic hit, the Supreme Court froze limitation across all proceedings and the IP offices extended deadlines. A record of those measures — and a note that the extensions have since concluded.
Raja Pannir Selvam · 20 April 2020
IP Offices Across South Asia During the COVID-19 Lockdowns
A record of how seven IP offices across the subcontinent handled the first lockdowns — suspensions, automatic deadline extensions, and the workarounds offices devised where filing was still paper-based.
23 March 2020
Indian IP Office Deadline Extensions During COVID-19: A Record
A chronology of the CGPDTM, Patent Office, Trade Marks Registry and Copyright Office notifications that extended IP deadlines during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown — plus the Supreme Court's suo-motu limitation extension.