Author name: Shan Kohli

458 Patent Examiners recruited, 396 begin work!

/ By / Patent, Trademark

Here’s some good news to begin the week! Earlier this year to commemorate World IP Day the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (“DIPP“) had announced the appointment of 458 new patent examiners. This was done to reduce timelines for examination of patents and trademarks.  As per a recent Financial Express report, of the 458 new examiners, 396 have already joined work after training. This indicates a four-fold increase in the number of examiners, up from the current figure of …

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The Moo Point: Cows and Bulls lock horns with IPRs

/ By / Biological Diversity, Patent

The good old cow was mooing along and minding her business when suddenly the Narendra Modi government was elected and she was catapulted from minor celebrity status to headline grabbing stardom. Everyone wants to protect her; self-appointed cow vigilantes have cropped all over the country who have no qualms in committing murder in her name.  Prime minister Narendra Modi last week issued a statement condemning self styled cow protectors as “anti-social”. Recently a PIL was also filed in the Supreme …

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Update: Respite for Microsoft in its dispute with Girnar

/ By / Copyright

We have a short update on the ongoing dispute in the Bombay High Court between Microsoft and Girnar.  For a background of the case so far read Prashant’s post available here and Balu’s update here.  As reported by Times of India, an appeal bench has now stayed the proceedings before Justice Gautam Patel. The matter was supposed to be heard on August 1, 2016 to decide on the terms of withdrawal of the suit and consent terms.  Settlement talks between …

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The Olympics Blackout Period, Use of Athlete Attributes and IPRs- Part II

/ By / Trademark

In the second part of this post, I discuss the intent behind the controversial Rule 40 and the reasons for its amendment prior to the Rio Games. I also discuss how Under Armour is one of the first few companies which will benefit from the changes to the new rule. Finally, I will discuss India’s stance on Rule 40. Read on for more. Intent of Rule 40 Rule 40 was initially put in place to protect the ‘amateur’ status of …

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The Olympics Blackout Period, Use of Athlete Attributes and IPRs- Part I

/ By / Trademark

It’s less than a fortnight to the Rio Olympic Games. This calls for a special post on IP and the Olympics. Did you know that rules surrounding the Olympic Games could, in the coming days, result in the latest Nike ad featuring Deepika Padukone being taken off air for a few weeks? If you haven’t already seen it, watch the ad here.  Read on as I delve into Olympic related IP aspects, particularly a controversial Rule 40 of the Olympic …

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The Intricacies of an Innocent Curve

/ By / Trademark

The Bombay High Court in Reliance Industries Ltd v Concord Enviro Systems Private Limited recently dismissed a trademark infringement suit filed by Reliance against Concord Enviro Systems. Read on for a complete analysis by Akshata Ankolekar, an associate at Solomon and Roy, Intellectual Property Services . FACTS The Plaintiff, the largest private sector corporation in India is the registered owner of’ ’ (hereinafter referred to as the ‘R Logo’) under various classes including Classes 7, 9 and 11. The Defendant …

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Fading into Oblivion: Lessons from a Ruthless World

/ By / Innovation

A recent article, which documents the story of the true inventor of cereal, has been doing the rounds lately on social media; it debunks the better known tussle between Dr. James Caleb Jackson and Dr. John Harvey Kellogg and instead credits Lucretia Jackson, Dr. Jackson’s wife as the true inventor. Incorrect attribution of an inventor to their invention? Hmm… where have we heard that one before, perhaps the Alexander Graham Bell and Antonio Meucci controversy over the inventor of the …

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Brexit in Times of Caution

/ By / Others

Brexit and the World “We have become so used to Nanny in Brussels that we have become infantilized, incapable of imagining an independent future. We used to run the biggest empire the world has ever seen, and with a much smaller domestic population and a relatively tiny civil service. Are we really unable to do trade deals?”- Boris Johnson in his piece for the Telegraph UK campaigning for Brexit. I think this line aptly summarises one of the Remain campaigns …

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Backing Up the Start-Up: Benefits of a Sound IPR Strategy

/ By / Innovation, Others

We bring to you a guest post by Sonia Chauhan, an associate at Talwar Advocates. In this post she discusses the benefits of having an IP strategy in place for start ups at an early stage and the pitfalls of leaving it for too late. Not only can an effective IP strategy aid in securing funding, no IP protection at all can result in copy cat models invading the market and a significant loss in market share. Read on for …

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Government relaxes FDI norms in Pharma

/ By / Drug Regulation, Others, Patent

The government has recently allowed up to 74% Foreign Direct Investment (“FDI”) in existing pharmaceutical companies (brownfield investment) through the automatic route.  100% FDI is already permitted under the existing policy for brownfield investments after obtaining approval of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (“FIPB”). The press release is available here.  From a plain reading these changes should lead to an increase in deals in the pharma sector.  The only difference between the recent change and the existing policy is a …

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