The Practice Of "Defendant Masking": A Mistake Or A Strategy?

Introduction

As we all know that "Masks" are conveniently used for hiding the real identity of a person, similar is the practice of "Defendant Masking." As the name suggests, the practice of 'defendant masking' is a strategy used by the plaintiffs in IPR suits to avoid detection of matter in the cause list by masking the 'main defendant' with the other defendant.¹ As a result, the plaintiffs succeed in obtaining injunctions in initial hearings of the suits due to the absence of the main defendant's counsel. Recently, the Delhi High Court took notice of such practice in the case of Bata India Ltd vs Chawla Boot House and Anr,² a case concerning trademark infringement and passing off action. The court took notice of the practice of Defendant Masking in this case and directed stricter measures from the Registry to control it in all IPR suits.