Introduction In a significant decision reaffirming the strength of well-known house marks in trademark law, the Delhi High Court dismissed a rectification petition filed by Holy Cow Foundation seeking removal of the trademark “PATANJALI GONYLE FLOOR CLEANER”, registered in Class 5 in favour of Patanjali Gramodyog Nyas (Trust) and others. The Court held that the…

Britannia Industries Limited instituted a suit before the Delhi High Court against Shri Swastik Organics & Ors., alleging infringement of trademark and copyright, passing off, and allied violations. Along with the suit, Britannia sought interim injunctive relief restraining the Defendants from using any trademark, shape, or name identical or deceptively similar to its registered “Little…

The article summarises case brought by Hermes International & Anr. (Plaintiffs) against Macky Lifestyle Private Limited & Anr. (Defendants) at the Delhi High Court for manufacturing, advertising, and selling products identical to the Plaintiffs’ ‘Birkin’ Bag and infringing on the ‘Hermes’ trademarks and stylized marks. Hermes, engaged in the luxury bags and accessories business, alleged…

Tesla Inc., a globally renowned manufacturer of electric vehicles (“EVs”) and sustainable energy solutions, instituted a suit before the Delhi High Court against Tesla Power India Private Limited and its affiliates, alleging trademark infringement, passing off, and allied reliefs. Along with the suit, Tesla Inc. sought an interim injunction restraining the Defendants from using the…

Imagine launching a brand, clearing examination, and even seeing your trademark published, only for the Trade Marks Registry to change its mind months later. That’s exactly what happened in Ashim Kumar Ghosh v. Registrar of Trade Marks (2025). The Delhi High Court’s decision to protect the trademark ‘SoEasy’ marks a broader shift in how Indian…

Introduction This appeal before the Division Bench of the Delhi High Court arose from an interim injunction order passed by the Commercial Court-13, Central District, Tis Hazari, Delhi, in a trademark infringement and passing-off action. The dispute concerns the use of the word ‘KARIM’ in the restaurant name GULSHAN-E-KARIM and examines the interplay between trademark…

The Division Bench (DB) of the Karnataka High Court recently delivered a significant ruling in a batch of appeals filed by the Appellant, Mr. Boman Irani and Classic Legends, challenging a common judgment of the Single Judge concerning the assets of Ideal Jawa (India) Ltd., a company under liquidation, and more specifically, the ownership and…

The Bombay High Court recently granted an interim injunction in favour of Petrofer Chemie H.R. Fischer GmbH & Co. KG (“Plaintiff”) in its trademark infringement and passing-off action against United Petrofer Limited (“Defendant”). The order restrains the Defendant from using the mark “UNITED PETROFER,” its corporate name, and the domain unitedpetrofer.com, or any other mark…

Design protection is crucial for businesses that rely on unique product appearances to differentiate themselves from the competitor’s product. The dispute between Relaxo Footwears Ltd. (Relaxo) and Aqualite Industries Pvt. Ltd. (Aqualite) over flip flop slippers (known as ‘hawai slippers’ in India) provides a clear guidance on novelty, prior art and aesthetic appeal of a…

There are strategic intellectual property considerations at every stage of a brand’s development. Ranjan Narula, Aditi Roy Chowdhury, and Simran Singh of RNA, Technology and IP Attorneys outline how startups can take a phased approach. In the life cycle of a startup, few assets are as powerful yet underestimated as intellectual property (IP). Among the…