Tribunals rarely fail on the substance. They fail on the administrative work that never reaches a bench — defective filings, abandonments, extensions. The IPAB’s answer in 2016 was to create a separate court for exactly that.
What the IPAB was
The Intellectual Property Appellate Board was constituted on 15 September 2003 to hear appeals against decisions of the Registrar under the Trade Marks Act, 1999 and the Geographical Indications of Goods Act, 1999. From 2007 it was also authorised to hear appeals from decisions, orders and directions of the Controller of Patents, along with pending appeals transferred from various High Courts.
Its structure and powers:
- each bench comprised a Judicial Member and a Technical Member;
- an order could generally be appealed within three months;
- the Board had exclusive jurisdiction over such appeals;
- under Section 92(1) of the Trade Marks Act, the Code of Civil Procedure did not apply, intended to make disposal faster;
- it could make its own rules for its conduct and proceedings — independence meant to aid speedy disposal;
- Sections 83 and 84 of the Trade Marks Act provided for its establishment and composition;
- ex parte injunctions were not available in IPAB proceedings; and
- it had the power to review its own orders.
The Deputy Registrar Court
On 21 September 2016, the Acting Chairman directed the constitution of a Deputy Registrar Court, under the powers in Sections 83 and 84 of the Trade Marks Act and Section 117B of the Patents Act, read with Section 92(1).
The Deputy Registrar Court was to take up matters before the IPAB Registry concerning administrative process — the maintainability of abandonment of applications and appeals for defects pending at the scrutiny stage, including receipt of counterstatements and replies, issuance of notices, and granting extensions of up to 30 days in miscellaneous proceedings.
It would sit regularly in the Chennai Registry, taking up matters under the Trade Marks Act, the Patents Act and the Geographical Indications Act, with the Registry listing pending matters before it — and sitting in Ahmedabad, Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai as required.
The logic is sound and generalises. A tribunal’s substantive benches should not spend their time on whether a counterstatement was received or whether an extension should run 20 days or 30. Separating administrative disposal from adjudication frees the benches for the work only they can do.
What happened afterwards
The initiative did not have long to prove itself. The IPAB was, for various reasons, substantially dysfunctional in the years that followed — frequently without a quorum, unable to sit for extended periods for want of appointed members.
It was abolished in April 2021 by the Tribunals Reforms (Rationalisation and Conditions of Service) Ordinance, with its jurisdiction transferred to the High Courts. The Delhi High Court responded by creating the country’s first Intellectual Property Division in July 2021, and other High Courts have since followed.
This note therefore records how the system worked before that change. Appeals from the Registrar of Trade Marks, the Controller of Patents and the GI Registry now lie to the High Courts, and the procedural framework described above — the three-month period, the exclusion of the CPC, the bar on ex parte injunctions — no longer governs them.
The takeaways
- The IPAB heard appeals in trademarks, GIs and, from 2007, patents.
- The CPC did not apply, and ex parte injunctions were unavailable.
- The 2016 Deputy Registrar Court separated administrative disposal from adjudication.
- The IPAB was abolished in 2021 — appeals now lie to the High Courts.
Frequently asked questions
What was the IPAB? A tribunal constituted in 2003 to hear appeals from the Registrar of Trade Marks and the GI Registry, and from 2007 the Controller of Patents.
Does the IPAB still exist? No — it was abolished in April 2021, with its jurisdiction transferred to the High Courts.
What was the Deputy Registrar Court? A court constituted within the IPAB in 2016 to handle administrative matters — defects, abandonments, counterstatements, notices and extensions — separately from substantive appeals.
Where do IP appeals go now? To the High Courts, several of which have constituted dedicated Intellectual Property Divisions.