Filing rectification application under the GI Act, 1999

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[*Long Post] As you are aware of, rectification application can be filed under Section 27 of Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 (“GI Act”). I intend to examine whether the aforesaid provision allows filing of rectification application on the ground of public interest. I shall argue in affirmative relying on the Supreme Court judgment in Hardie Trading Ltd. and Anr. v. Addisons Paint and Chemicals Ltd. (“Hardie Trading Ltd”) and IPAB order in Payyannur ring [covered here]. Prashant […]

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National Pharmaceutical Policy 2012

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In an earlier post (here) we had blogged about the National Pharmaceutical Policy 2011 and its essential features.  The last post left off at AIDAN’s (All India Drug Action Network) PIL (Public Interest Litigation) and the Supreme Court’s (SC) observations that the government should ensure that the prices of essential drugs reduce rather than escalate.  During the hearing of this PIL the SC recently directed the Government to expedite the notification of the policy. It was notified on 7 December

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Royalty Payment by Subsidiaries: Bane of Minority Investors?

/ By / Trademark

(Image taken from here)Payment of royalty has been one of the time-honoured ways of incentivizing knowledge and technology transfer and usage of brand name or trademark for business affairs. Few years back in 2009, the Indian government had waived the requirement of payment of such royalty by Indian companies to multinational corporations to be subjected to prior government approval (by the Project Approval Board in the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion). Instead, such payments up to any amount had

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Guest Post: Traditional knowledge patent applications: Need for deliberation

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We are happy to bring you yet another guest post in our SpicyIP Fellowship applicant series. Madhulika Vishwanathan brings our attention to the Dec 18th announcement of the final version of the Guidelines for Processing of Patent Applications relating to Traditional Knowledge and Biological material. Prashant had earlier commented on the draft guidelines here.  Madhulika is a qualified Indian patent agent, with a Masters in Pharmacology from UDCT, Mumbai. She formerly worked in the patent cell of a biotech company in

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Guest Post: Court rejects Apple’s motion for Permanent Injunction against Samsung

/ By / Patent

The Apple – Samsung tussle is one that has now almost frequently found its way into our blog. It’s being watched so closely due to its near symbolism of how patent wars may affect the landscape for technological innovation as we progress into an era where patent policy can directly affect more and more aspects of our lives. We are happy to present to our readers with a guest post on the latest US update on this international battle. Amshula

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SpicyIP Fellowship opened out to everyone interested

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In light of some more applications we’ve received from ‘non students’ for our SpicyIP Fellowship, we’ve decided to open it out to not just ‘students and recent graduates’ as first stated, but to all persons interested. The original post has been edited accordingly. Once again, for those interested in applying. – How to apply?  Fellows will be chosen based on quality of guest posts submitted to us over a 6 week period from 14th December, 2012 to 25th January, 2013. 

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‘Not just a Trophy Treaty’

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Pictured: Surprisingly unempathetic lady of justice (thus far) Recently in one of our guest posts, Snigdha Roy made a note of the lack of international consensus towards a treaty that has, for too long, been in the offing. I can’t fathom why discussion and debate over the necessity of an international treaty that would essentially give print disabled persons access to the same materials that others have always enjoyed, is something that would take four long years. But such is

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SpicyIP Tidbit: It is time to test the claim of patient assistance programs by Big Pharma

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One of the constant refrains from Big Pharma companies involved in patent litigation against generic companies in India is that they are targeting only the prosperous middle class which can afford their drugs and not the poor of the country, to whom they supply their drugs free under their patient assistance programs.  It is time somebody tested these claims by Big Pharma companies in India. Any Big Pharma company making such a claim in open court should be made to

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American Court rules against confidentiality for Cadila’s ‘in-house’ Indian counsel

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Image from here In an opinion rendered on the 19th of October, 2012 the United States District Court for the District of Delware ruled against Cadila Healthcare Ltd’s plea that its communications involving its Indian ‘in-house’ counsel were privileged and confidential under Indian law. While the opinion does not lay out the background context, I presume that the request was made by the plaintiffs in the litigation during the course of discovery.  The U.S. Court had appointed Justice Sri Krishna,

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Divisional application practice before the Indian patent office

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In a recent decision issued by the IPAB, the division bench comprising of Justice Prabha Sridevan with technical member, DPS Parmar – has reiterated the divisional practice that is supposed to be followed before the Indian patent office.  See decision: The basis of a divisional application is the existence of a plurality of invention. This is a sine qua non for seeking a division of an application.   The decision puts a formal stop to the practice of filing multiple

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