Intellectual Property

Under Indian trade mark law, the term “well-known trademark” refers to a mark which has become so well-known to a substantial segment of the public through its extensive and continuous use such that its use in relation to any other goods or services by another party may be taken as indicating a connection between the two parties. ......

The principle of “unity of invention” is near universal to patent law and entails that a single patent application must relate to a single invention or to a group of linked inventions having a ‘single inventive concept’. If the application lacks unity of invention, the applicant may split the original application, and file a “divisional application” seeking protection for the (additional) plurality of inventions. ......

Under Indian trademark law, any person claiming to be the proprietor of a trademark may apply to register the trademark. The trademark may either be in use or proposed to be used. Generally, the person who uses or controls both the use of the trademark and the nature and quality of the goods or services to which it is affixed, is considered the owner of the trademark. ......

When hardcoded statutory deadlines are violated, can delays be condoned? This was the central question answered by the Delhi High Court in The European Union Represented by the European Commission vs. Union of India. The court allowed for an extension of a non-extendable statutory deadline in a patent matter because of the exceptional circumstances of the case. ......

One of the three universal requirements for the grant of a patent is that the patent must be for a new invention. The Indian Patents Act, 1970 (the Act) defines a ‘new invention’ in Section 2(l) as ‘any invention or technology which has not been anticipated by publication in any document or used in the country or elsewhere in the world before the date of filing of patent application with complete specification. ......

Official trademark fees in India for filing a trademark, as well as fees related to aspects of trademark prosecution, such as opposition, renewal, expedited registration, etc., are provided in the First Schedule of the Trade Mark Rules, 2017. If the fees are not paid or are insufficient, then the document or form provided in connection with a particular process will be deemed not to have been filed. ......

Cinema is a way of life in India, and the one film that epitomizes this national obsession is Sholay. Released nearly half a century ago, Sholay is a genre-defining film, whose appeal transcends all boundaries of geography, language, ideology, and class, and that established standards for what we now call “masala” blockbusters. ......

You have a new and innovative solution (for example, a product or a method) that solves a problem. You want to apply for a patent covering that solution. To discuss the patent application, you set up an appointment with a drafting patent attorney. ......

If a patent application discloses any nucleotide or amino acid sequences, the description of the invention must contain a ‘sequence listing’. A sequence listing is a list of biological sequences using defined terms for certain features. This includes descriptive information about each sequence, which is known as annotations. ......