Between Suit Courts And High Courts: Decoding Trademark Rectification After The Tribunal Reforms Act

Abstract

This article critically examines the interplay between trademark infringement suits before civil courts and the rectification proceedings under the Trademarks Act, 1999, following the enactment of the Tribunal Reforms Act, 2021 (TRA), which abolished the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) and transferred the jurisdiction for trademark rectifications to the High Courts. The TRA's amendments have led to significant procedural uncertainties, particularly regarding the initiation of rectification applications in the context of ongoing trademark infringement suits. Section 124 of the TM Act provides two primary routes for initiating rectification: (i) filing a rectification application before the High Court while seeking a stay from the Suit Court, or (ii) obtaining an adjournment from the Suit Court to file a rectification application if no such proceedings are pending. The article analyses key judicial decisions in the expansive precedents laid down