Quests for personal gains have become so intense that those involved in litigation do not hesitate to take shelter of falsehood and misrepresent and suppress facts in the court proceedings. Materialism, opportunism and malicious intent have overshadowed the old ethos of litigative values for small gains. This post discusses the perils of suppressing material facts…

Working Statement required to be filed by patentees every year continues to be a controversial subject. The frequent change in forms and differing stand of the Patent Office has added to the confusion. The Indian Patent Office has, after more than two years of the consultation process with stakeholders draft form that it rolled out…

Can the state’s literacy rate be a criterion while deciding the likelihood of confusion between the trademarks? An appeal before the High Court of Kerala challenges the District Court’s finding holding “Kerala has a high rate of literacy; the deception on account of a deceptively similar trade mark is not possible.” Facts of the case…

As Covid19 has created business uncertainty, the M&A activity, in general, has slowed down but still there are companies/businesses that are tapping crisis opportunity to make strategic acquisitions. We outline a few commonly asked questions from IP perspective in a transaction involving transfer of IP assets. I am acquiring a business what are the IP…

The post discusses an interesting decision by the Delhi High Court on similarity of marks BOAT and BOULT used for consumer electronic devices such as earphones, headphones, speakers, and other accessories. Imagine marketing Pvt. Ltd (“Plaintiff”), owner of the mark BOAT has brought this action against Exotic Mile (“Defendant”), owner of the mark BOULT alleging…

The two dominant players in cigarette category ITC Limited, (ITC) and Godfrey Philips (India) Limited (Godfrey) are pitted against each other over the use of mark FLAKE, and its packaging. ITC took Godfrey to Bombay High Court seeking injunctive relief for infringement of copyright, trademark and passing off in relation to use of similar trademark,…

“In photography, there is a reality so subtle that it becomes more real than reality.”– Alfred Stieglitz It is a typical lockdown day. I take a photo of beautiful rain drops falling on my patio, and I enjoy it sipping a cup of tea. A picturesque moment! I click a photo, upload it on Instagram…

The matter pertains to use of the mark/name CHIREC for educational institute (Higher Secondary and High School), one in Hyderabad and the other in a remote district (Madhugiri Taluk) in the state of Karnataka. CHIREC is allegedly a coined word derived from ‘Children’s Recreation Centre’. Both parties assert rights over the mark/name CHIREC. The post…

In a much awaited decision, the High Court of Madras has finally cleared the air in the dispute regarding use of the words MAGIC/ MAGICAL and MASALA (a mixture of different spices used in Indian cooking) for food products. In 2013, the conflict had arisen between the two well established FMCG companies ITC Limited (“ITC”)…

This case brings about some interesting takeaways on the questions of facts, issues, and jurisdiction in the context of copyright infringement by a company currently undergoing insolvency process. The ruling clarifies that (a) a corporate debtor that is subject of insolvency proceedings, the infringement of intellectual assets by it is to be determined by National…

This post analyses the challenges of protecting engineering or technical drawing that are likely to be transformed into a product. Should it be protected as an “artistic work” under the Copyright Act or as a “design” under the Designs Act? For a commercial enterprise, generally, a drawing follows a prototype before making the final product,…

Sun Pharma Laboratories Limited (Sun Pharma), and BDR Pharmaceuticals have locked horns over the marks LABEBET and LULIBET. Sun Pharma is the registered proprietor of the trademark LABEBET in class 5 since 2009. Sun Pharma brought a trademark infringement and passing off action against BDR Pharmaceuticals International Pvt. Ltd. (BDR Pharma) and its contract manufacturer…