Trademarks
Perspectives on trademarks across India and the subcontinent.
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.
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, then deferred to 2018, then to 2020. The benefits for businesses on both sides are real and uncontested — which makes the repeated slippage the notable part of the story.
Raja Pannir Selvam · 22 May 2020
Trademark Protection in the Maldives: FAQs on the Cautionary Notice
The Maldives has no trademark statute or registry — protection is secured by publishing a cautionary notice in the newspaper. How the system works, what information you need, and how to renew.
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.
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.
21 October 2019
Trademark Law and Cultural Appropriation: The Remedies (Part II)
When a corporation trademarks an aspect of a community's heritage, what can that community do? A rundown of the tools under Indian trademark law — absolute-grounds refusal, collective marks, opposition, cancellation and suits — and why they come at a premium.
30 September 2019
Trademarks and Cultural Appropriation: Who Owns 'Hakuna Matata'?
Kim Kardashian withdrew an application to register 'Kimono' after public backlash. Disney holds 'Hakuna Matata' for clothing. The objections are understandable — but the questions they raise about who owns a cultural asset have no settled answer.
3 September 2019
The 'Essential Feature' Doctrine: When One Word Decides Infringement
'MAXCURE' infringed 'MAX' because 'MAX' was the essential, source-identifying feature of the plaintiff's marks. How Indian courts isolate the dominant element to decide trademark infringement.
26 August 2019
IP and MSMEs: Bridging the Gap
MSMEs generate a large share of India's innovation and protect very little of it. The obstacles are cost and a perception that IP is complex — both of which are addressed by schemes and fee concessions most MSMEs do not know exist.
7 August 2019
PULSE Pulses PULSER: A Copycat Candy — and Damages for an Animal Cause
A street hawker sold 'PULSER' Kaccha Aam candies copying PULSE's trade dress and tagline. The Delhi High Court injuncted it — and, in a notable twist, directed the defendant to donate ₹2 lakh to an animal welfare centre instead of paying the plaintiff.
3 August 2019
Amway v. Amazon: The Direct Selling Injunction, and Its Reversal
A single judge held the Direct Selling Guidelines binding, found platforms had lost safe harbour by failing due diligence, and injuncted them. The Division Bench set that aside in 2020 — which makes the appellate reasoning the part that matters.