By protecting borders from the entry of goods that violate intellectual property, the Customs Authorities have gained prominence for their role in enforcing intellectual property rights.

In response to the increase in international trade, Customs has assumed responsibility for border control and intellectual property protection, since there can be no better method of protecting intellectual property than confiscating infringing goods at the border.

In addition to weakening the benefits to the innovator, counterfeiting strikes deep at the spirit of entrepreneurship. The sale of counterfeit goods adversely affects consumer interests and often remains outside of the tax net. Consequently, intellectual property protection has been widely recognized as one of the most important factors contributing to economic growth, fostering innovation, and attracting investment.

In accordance with Indian custom, what types of IPRs are protected?

Importation of goods that violate specific provisions of:

According to Section 11 of the Customs Act, the Central Government has the authority to prohibit importation or exportation of goods that, inter alia, violate patents, trademarks, copyrights, designs and geographical indications. 

January 2023
Delhi High Court sets aside registration of ‘Swiss Military’ trademark by private company
The Delhi High Court has set aside the registration of ‘Swiss Military’ and the logo by a private company called Promoshirts SM. The HC has held that a red cross with white background and the words ‘Swiss Military’ serve as a source identifier for the goods of Swiss Origin for the public.
Read More
January 2023
Return of iconic Yezdi motorcycle hits legal hurdle, Karnataka HC cancels trademark acquisition by heir of original maker
The return of ‘Yezdi’, an iconic Indian motorcycle from the 1970s, has suffered a legal setback with the Karnataka High Court ruling as illegal the acquisition of the ‘Yezdi’ trademark by a member of the family of the original owners — Ideal Jawa (India) Pvt Ltd — which went into liquidation two decades ago.
Read More
December 2022
India to seek IPR waiver for green energy tech at G20
India is planning to push for a waiver of intellectual property rights (IPR) for technologies related to green energy and energy transition in a bid to bridge the technology gap across G20 countries, two officials aware of the matter said. India took over presidency of the grouping earlier this month.
Read More

News & Events

Blogs

Breaking News: Toyota Loses Trademark Battle over Prius at Indian Supreme Court

The plaintiff, in this case, is Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha and they seek to prevent the defendant, a spare parts supplier by the name M/S Prius Auto Industries Limited, from the usage of the trademarks- “Toyota”, “Innova”, and “Prius”. According to the finding of the court, two of the three trademarks mentioned, namely Toyota and […]

Why Intellectual Property Rights

Intellectual property rights create a situation in which the inventor or the creator enjoys full ownership and rights to commercial exploitation of his creation while everyone else is excluded. The justification is that such a creation, if it has material value, must benefit the creator while preventing others who would otherwise commercially exploit the concept […]

An Overview of Copyright

WIPO defines copyright as the right of creators to ownership of their creations and to make use for commercial or other purposes. Copyright today covers literary creations, printed material, computer programs, data, audiovisual media, dance, paintings and drawings, photographs, sculpture, architecture, ad material, technical drawings and others that are the outcome of intellectual effort. From […]

X
Download Firm Profile