A Draft Amendment to the Cinematograph Act could Put You In Jail the Next Time You Record an End-Credits Scene in a Movie Hall

As some of you may have heard, the USPTO denied a trademark to Erik Brunetti’s “FUCT” line of apparel on grounds that the mark was immoral/scandalous! The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) ruled that the refusal was unconstitutional since it violated the constitutional guarantee of free speech. The US government appealed and the US Supreme Court just granted cert and will hear arguments soon. As Dennis Crouch notes in Patently O: “..the Federal Circuit sided with Brunetti…

SpicyIP Weekly Review (December 31-January 6)

by Prarthana Patnaik January 6, 2019

Patent Plant Variety Protection

We started 2019 with a bang-and quite a few interesting posts! Thematic Highlight We had an enlightening guest post related to the Mosanto v. Nuziveedu case. In her post, the author notes that the Delhi HC had relied on a number of European precedents to conclude that Monsanto’s claimed invention covering the Bt gene construct and a process for preparing the transgenic Bt Cotton plant amounted to an “essentially biologically process” (which is excluded under Section 3(j) of the Patent…

Excluding “Essentially Biological Processes”: Implications for Monsanto vs Nuziveedu

by Pankhuri Agarwal January 2, 2019

We are pleased to bring to you an insightful guest post by Dr. Deepa Kachroo Tiku on a contested provision of patent law involving the exclusion of plants/animals and essentially biological processes. As readers are aware, this exclusion (section 3(j)) is at the forefront of a big ticket patent battle between Monsanto and Nuziveedu. As we understand, the hearings have concluded and the court is expected to issue a decision sometime soon. Deepa is a partner at K&S Partners and…

Trademark

Trademarking “Hakuna Mata”: A Problem Free Philosophy For IP?

by Shamnad Basheer January 2, 2019

Even as we were bidding adieu to 2018, one of the most contentious IP issues cropped up. Thanks to Disney’s trademark over Hakuna Matata (from the Lion King) and an online petition protesting against this blatant cultural (mis)appropriation! I reflect on this in the Hindustan Times and excerpt some portions below. Hardly a stress free issue. But then again, these are complex cases not amenable to easy resolution. The best we can do is to continue to debate and remain…

A Look Back at India’s Top IP Developments of 2018

by Prarthana Patnaik January 1, 2019

Here’s wishing all our readers a Happy New Year! We hope 2018 lived up to your expectations. If it didn’t, forget about it. It’s in the past now – best leave it there as 2019 beckons! As always, we take this time to reflect upon the year gone by – taking a walk down memory lane to recount all the exciting developments that took place in 2018, and reshaped the Indian IP landscape. This year, we’ve divided the developments into…

Biological Diversity

The Uttarakhand High Court’s Flight of Fancy While Interpreting the Biological Diversity Act

by Prashant Reddy December 31, 2018

In a judgment delivered on December 21, 2018 a judge of the Uttarakhand High Court ruled that Divya Pharmacy, an Indian company that manufactures Ayurvedic medicines, will be subject to the benefit sharing obligations under the Biological Diversity Act. As a result, Divya Pharmacy will be required to make payments to the Uttarakhand State Biodiversity Board as per the rates laid down in the Access and Benefit Sharing Guidelines, 2014. Like many other Indian companies, Divya Pharmacy had taken the…

SpicyIP Fortnightly Review (December 17-30)

by Rishabh Mohnot December 31, 2018

Here’s the round-up of the last fortnight of 2018! Thematic Highlight Prarthana wrote a post on Carlsberg Breweries v. Som Distilleries, in which a 5-judge bench of the Delhi High Court held that a composite suit for design infringement and passing off is maintainable, and further, a remedy for passing off for a registered design can be brought if the said design is not functioning as a trademark and if the remedy of passing off is claimed for trade dress…

Patent

Novartis vs Section 3(d): Once Bitten, Clearly not Shy!

by Shamnad Basheer December 30, 2018

I was a tad bit surprised to see Novartis move a patent application claiming a polymorph, without much evidence of its therapeutic superiority. Resulting in a rejection from the Indian Patent Office. Here is what the Assistant Controller, Dr Archana Gupta states: “The patent application no. 305/DELNP/2009 was filed on 14/01/2009 by the applicant entitled “Crystal Form of Epothilone B and use in Pharmaceutical Compositions”. Objections: 1. Subject matter of the claims do not constitute an invention under section 2[1(j)] of…

SpicyIP Jobs: Senior Associates (Litigation) at Inttl Advocare, New Delhi

by Pankhuri Agarwal December 23, 2018