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Court Re-Emphasizes the Exclusion of Generic Terms from Registration

This post was first published on March 30, 2012. Recently Madras High Court has delivered a very interesting judgment on trademark infringement and passing off in the case of Rhizome Distilleries Pvt. Ltd Vs. Union Of India & Others on 16 February, 2012. The suit has been filed by Rhizome Distilleries Pvt. Ltd against four different Respondents. They are- 1. Union of India,  2. Intellectual Property Appellate Board,  3. The Registrar of Trade Marks,  4. Pernod Richard S.A. The petitioner company is a…
August 3, 2019 Intellectual Property, Trademarks 0Comment 785Views 0Like
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This image depicts the 'Trademark' and 'Registered' symbols. This post is a part of a series on what marks are permissible as trademarks. Click on the image to read the full post.

Grounds for Refusal of Trademark Registration – Part III

This post was first published on 8th July, 2014.   In today’s post, we’ll be talking about Section 9(3), thereby concluding one half of the series, i.e., absolute grounds for refusal of registration of trademarks. Section 9(3) talks about the registrability of the shape of goods. As per the provision, a mark shall not be registered as a trademark if it consists exclusively of: Shape of goods which results from the nature of the goods themselves; Shape of goods necessary…
July 28, 2019 Intellectual Property, Trademarks 0Comment 1348Views 0Like
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This image depicts several well known brand logos such as McDonald's and Coca-Cola. This post is about the transborder reputation of well known marks. Click on the image to read the full post.

Trans-border Reputation of Well Known Marks – Part IV

This post was first published on 7th July, 2014.   Spillover reputation of trademarks is a subject matter of endless legal tussles. Indian Courts and Tribunals frequently deal with cases related to foreign entities challenging honest and bona fide use of a similar mark by Indian entities even in situations where such foreign entities are not using their marks in India. In this post, we will discuss the concept of Transborder reputation. To claim Transborder reputation for a mark in India, the mark…
July 27, 2019 Intellectual Property, Trademarks 0Comment 1087Views 0Like
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The image depicts the logo of Mucosolvan. This post describes a recent win for its trademark in a legal tussle. Click on the image to read the full post.

MUCOSOLVIN confusingly similar to MUCOSOLVAN

This post was first published on 5th January, 2014.   The Hon’ble Delhi High Court delivered another thought-provoking judgment on the 16th of December, 2013 related to the pharmaceutical industry. The plaintiff in the present case is Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma Gmbh & Co., a German company with its principal place of business in Germany, whereas the Defendant is IPCA Laboratories Ltd., with its principal place of business in Mumbai. The Plaintiff has been using the trademark MUCOSOLVAN since 1979 in 56 countries including India for pharmaceutical…
July 25, 2019 Intellectual Property, Trademarks 0Comment 1079Views 0Like
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The image reads 'Trademark Registration and Protection' with a heap of Trademark signs in the backdrop. This post talks about the process of trademark registration. Click on the image to read the full post.

An In-Depth look at the Trademark Registration Process- Part 1

This post was first published on 2nd July, 2014.   A trademark is a sign that is used to identify goods and services as those produced or provided by a specific person or enterprise. It helps in distinguishing those goods and services from similar ones provided by another. For example, ‘Apple’ is the trademark that identifies goods and services manufactured and distributed by Apple Inc. The object of trademark law is to deal with the precise nature of rights, which a person…
July 25, 2019 Intellectual Property, Trademarks 0Comment 918Views 0Like
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This image depicts a toothpaste tube shaped like a banana. It raises the question of such possibility. This post explores how traditional knowledge is used and misused by patents. Click on the image to read the full post.

Comparative Advertising: Pepsodent v. Colgate

This post was first published on August 21, 2013 There is yet another war between Hindustan Unilever Limited (Pepsodent) and Colgate- Palmolive (Colgate), regarding a comparative advertisement by HUL, which shows two kids brushing their teeth with Pepsodent and Colgate, where both the toothpaste packs are clearly visible. The kids then take a cavity test, and the voiceover follows which says that, Pepsodent Germicheck is 130% better than Colgate, when it comes to germ attack (news available here). Colgate-Palmolive is known to…
July 9, 2019 Intellectual Property, Trademarks 0Comment 2258Views 0Like
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The image depicts a pack of cards by the mark 555. The court in a infringement case over the mark 555 held that the principle of unclean hands will apply to trademark cases. Click on the image to read the full post.

Doctrine of unclean hands- Now a defense in trademark infringement!

  This post was first published on March 22, 2011.   The Indian Courts, in the recent past have continuously surprised us by pulling one trick after the other when it comes to dealing with Intellectual Property cases. This time around it is the Bombay High Court while dealing with a trademark infringement matter in the recent case of M/S.J.K. Sons vs M/S.Parksons Games & Sports (decided on March 18, 2011).The facts involve M/S Parksons Games & Sports (respondents) being the owners of…
February 7, 2019 Intellectual Property, Trademarks 0Comment 1459Views 0Like
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This image depicts evolution form apes to human beings. This post describes the history and evolution of the trademark system. Click on the image to read the full post.

History and Evolution of the Trademark System

  First Publication Date: 7th January 2011   History of (trade)marks Dating back to those barbarian times where majority of people could not read or write is when symbols became a logical method of letting people know, what belonged to whom? The earliest marks were that of marking of animals, so a farmer, rancher or lord could distinguish what animals belonged to whom. As commerce developed, marks began to serve a number of purposes. ‘Potters mark’ of Greek and Roman times appeared…
January 2, 2019 Intellectual Property, Trademarks 1Comment 12563Views 0Like
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Trademark Registration in India

Trademark Registration in India

The Trademark process outlines in this post has changed owing to changes in law. It may be noted that the post provides details of the trademark registration process as it existed 10 years back, and maybe useful for research/educational purposes.Registration of a trademark is not compulsory. However, registered trademarks have additional benefits when compared to unregistered trademarks. Read more Continue Reading Trademark Registration in India
October 17, 2018 Intellectual Property, Trademarks 0Comment 1100Views 0Like
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This image depicts the 'Trademark' and 'Registered' symbols. This post is a part of a series on what marks are permissible as trademarks. Click on the image to read the full post.

Grounds for Refusal of Trademark Registration – Part II

In the previous blog post, we discussed Section 9(1) which laid down a few absolute grounds for refusal of registration of trademarks. Today, we’ll explain in detail, Section 9(2) which states: "A mark shall not be registered as a trademark if: It is of such nature as to deceive the public or cause confusion; It contains or comprises any matter likely to hurt the religious susceptibilities of any class or section of the citizens…
July 4, 2014 Intellectual Property, Trademarks 0Comment 2558Views 1Like
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