Joint Suit Allowed For Design Infringement, Passing Off

A special bench of five judges of Delhi High Court in its judgment in Carlsberg Breweries v Som Distilleries and Breweries Limited held that a composite suit that joins two causes of action – one for infringement of a registered design and the other for passing off – is maintainable.

This overrules the judgment of the three-judge bench of Delhi High Court in Mohan Lal v Sona Paint (2013), where it was held that these two actions cannot be combined in one suit. The majority view in this case was that the cause of action for a suit for infringement of a registered design is different from the cause of action on which a claim of passing off is premised and therefore two separate suits have to be filed.