The Delhi High Court pronounced a historic judgment on January 4, 2016, when it passed a decree for payment of the highest damages granted in a trademark suit in India till date.
The Delhi High Court’s order (Cartier International AG & ors v Gaurav Bhatia & ors) against Digaaz, the defendant operating an e-commerce website on which counterfeit products bearing the trademarks and logos of various luxury brands were being offered for sale, would be significant of its own right. However it’s when it assessed damages that the resolve of Indian courts to prevent defendants from profiting from the fruits of illicit enterprise became abundantly clear. All in all, the court granted a decree assessing damages to Rs. 1 crore (or Rs. 10 million), setting a new record.
Authored by Pravin Anand and Raunaq Kamath.
This article was published in Asia IP March 2016.