Search Indian IP Case Law
Judgments of the Supreme Court and the High Courts on patents, trade marks, copyright, designs and geographical indications — organised by Act and section, each with a link to the judgment on the court’s website.
37 results
for “passing off”
Acqua Minerals Limited v. Pramod Borse & Anr.
Registration of a domain name identical or deceptively similar to another's well-known trade mark, by a person having no legitimate connection with that mark and who seeks to profit from its transfer, amounts to bad faith cybersqu…
Bad Faith AdoptionCybersquattingDomain NamesPassing OffTrade MarksCadila Health Care Ltd. v. Cadila Pharmaceuticals Ltd.
In assessing deceptive similarity between trade marks for medicinal products, courts must apply a stricter standard than for ordinary goods because confusion can endanger public health, having regard to the nature of the marks, th…
Deceptive SimilarityPassing OffPharmaceutical TrademarkPhonetic SimilarityDesignsCarlsberg Breweries A/S v. Som Distilleries and Breweries Ltd.
A single suit combining a cause of action for infringement of a registered design with a cause of action for passing off is maintainable under Order II Rule 3 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 where both claims flow from the sa…
Composite SuitCopyright Design OverlapDesign InfringementPassing OffOtherD.M. Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. v. Baby Gift House & Ors.
Every individual, and particularly a celebrity, possesses an enforceable right of publicity in the commercial value of his persona, including name, likeness, voice, style and mannerisms, which can be licensed to a corporate entity…
Character MerchandisingFalse EndorsementPassing OffPersonality RightsTrade MarksDaimler Benz Aktiegesellschaft & Anr. v. Hybo Hindustan
A trade mark that has attained an extraordinary worldwide reputation is entitled to protection against use on entirely unrelated goods, since such unauthorised use dilutes and demeans the distinctiveness of the mark; delay or hone…
Delay And AcquiescenceDilutionPassing OffTrademark InfringementCopyrightDr. Ashok M. Bhat v. Harichand Nagpal & Ors.
An injunction against use of a registered artistic work follows the artistic work onto any label, not merely the one impugned in the plaint. In Order XXXIX Rule 2A proceedings justification is no defence: so long as an order stand…
Contempt of InjunctionCounterfeitingExemplary CostsOrder XXXIX Rule 2ATrade MarksGodfrey Phillips India Ltd. v. Girnar Food & Beverages (P) Ltd.
A trade mark that is otherwise descriptive or laudatory of the goods is not, for that reason alone, incapable of protection in a passing off action; if the mark has, through long and extensive use, acquired a secondary meaning ide…
Descriptive MarksDistinctivenessGeneric MarksPassing OffTrade MarksHamdard National Foundation (India) & Anr. v. Sadar Laboratories Pvt. Ltd.
While composite trade marks must be compared as a whole under the anti-dissection rule, it is permissible to examine a dominant or significant common element in determining the overall commercial impression, and a composite mark m…
Anti-Dissection RuleComposite MarksDeceptive SimilarityTrade DressTrade MarksHavells India Limited & Anr. v. Havai Home Products Pvt. Ltd. & Ors.
Even a registered proprietor may be restrained from using a trade mark where the ingredients of passing off are established. Section 27(2) preserves the common-law remedy of passing off notwithstanding the statutory rights arising…
Anti-Dissection RuleDeceptive SimilarityDishonest AdoptionPassing OffOtherICC Development (International) Ltd. v. Arvee Enterprises & Anr.
The right of publicity is derived from the right of privacy and vests exclusively in a living individual and the indicia of that individual's personality, such as name, likeness, voice and signature. Publicity or personality right…
Ambush MarketingFalse EndorsementPassing OffPersonality Rights