The division bench of Delhi High Court, in its judgment dated 24
January 2019, upheld the single judge's order refusing interim
injunctions against the use of similar designs of Crocs
footwear.
Various suits were filed by Crocs (the plaintiff) for
infringement of its registered designs (No.197685 and No.197686)
against several defendants. Earlier, the single judge had granted
ex parte ad interim injunctions, and subsequently
defendants challenged the proceedings and also applied for the
vacation of ex parte orders.
The defendants argued that there cannot be an infringement of a
registered design if the registration granted to the plaintiff with
respect to the footwear itself was an invalid registration. It was
argued that the plaintiff's registered design at the time of
registration was not a new or original design, and there existed
prior publication of a registered design. In support of this, the
plaintiff submitted web shots from an internet archive.
