Tag: India

On July 03, 2019, the Ministry of Home Affairs through a written statement informed the Rajya Sabha that the present Government has no plans on amending the laws on sedition in the country so as to ensure that the Government has effective means to combat anti-national, secessionist and terrorist elements. In an election, where national security was a huge factor for the political parties, a stance that was taken by certain political parties was that they would like to amend the present sedition laws in our country^[1], whereas, the ruling party’s stand was that they would like to toughen the existing sedition laws.^[2]...

Over the years, a large number of patents have been granted for antibodies all over the world. The world is also seeing a shift towards biologic based drugs. Most of the top-selling drugs in 2018 were monoclonal antibodies with HUMIRA® leading the list. With the progress in the art and growing case law in this area, the criteria for patentability of antibodies are becoming increasingly strict, with restrictions on the scope of the claims. ...

The Madras High Court earlier this year rejected a writ petition filed against a patent owned by Kibow Biotech Inc. for a dietary supplement that aids in the carrying out of the kidney function, for reasons, among others, that there was no expert evidence led to support the case. The validity of the patent was challenged primarily under Section 3(e) of the Patents Act, i.e., on grounds that it was “a substance obtained by a mere admixture resulting only in the aggregation of the properties of the components thereof or a process for producing such substance”....

In a recent case, Kamdhenu, manufacturers of steel rods had obtained a design registration in 2014 for a certain type of steel bars it was manufacturing. It alleged that Aashiana had infringed its registered design, and successfully obtained an interim injunction against the latter company.A speedy disposal of the injunction was issued once the matter was contested by Aashiana. Here’s a look at what led to this rather quick decision by the court and what it could mean towards ensuring that the rights of the parties are truly protected in theory as well as practice....

Sumathi Chandrashekaran of Obhan & Associates looks into the possible implications of a recent tender regarding blockchain, artificial intelligence and machine learning, issued by the IPO. The changes that would come about as a result of these implementations would dramatically improve user experience of the IPO services. Here’s a closer look at what the impact would be at each stage of application and grant....

The Reserve Bank of India (“RBI”) has introduced a system of the Single Master Form (“SMF”) for foreign investment reporting. Significantly, the RBI now requires all Indian entities having foreign investment to provide an update of the total foreign investment by July 12, 2018....

The Copyright Office recently put out its final Practice and Procedure Manual for examinations of applications in literary, artistic, musical, cinematograph film and sound recording works. This publication comes after the draft guidelines were put up for public notice and comment earlier this year. The Manual details how different types of applications will be handled. We put together the information on computer programmes, databases, websites, and apps....

Can protected IP be used for commercial gain? What is the royalty associated, and whether it is a means of adequate remuneration for the IP owner or a barrier to access for prospective licensee. The article discusses these issues and is a part of a series of articles that will address the matter in totality....

The research team at Obhan & Associates have conducted a study to understand the number of women patent applicants in India. It has been heartening to see a considerable rise in the percentage of women applicants since a 2014 article that appeared on the subject. The article looks at, briefly, the role of women in IP the world over, and identifies avenues of further study that can eventually help define policy choices in the future....