IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
Jyoti Singh, J.
Havells India Limited - Appellant
Versus
Panasonic Life Solutions India Private Limited - Respondent
CS(Comm) 261 of 2022 and I.A. 6259 of 2022, 7226 of 2022
Decided On : 31-05-2022
In a suit for infringement of registered designs and passing off, the Delhi High Court held that the plaintiff had made out a prima facie case for grant of interim injunction against the defendant. The court found that the defendant's products were substantially similar to the plaintiff's registered designs and that the defendant had copied the plaintiff's designs with a clear intent to deceive the public. The court also found that the balance of convenience lay in favor of the plaintiff, as the defendant had only recently launched its products and the plaintiff would suffer irreparable loss if the injunction was not granted.
Fact of the Case:
The plaintiff, Havells India Limited, is a registered design owner/proprietor of its various ceiling fans including ENTICER/ENTICER ART and ENTICER ART-NS STONE. The defendant, Panasonic Corporation, is in electrical business for over five decades. It is using several intellectual properties of Panasonic since 2007 such as ANCHOR, ROMA, VISION. Today, it offers over 3000 products including switches, wires, lamps, fans with 5 Regional and 26 Sales offices and 5,000 authorized stockists/dealers/distributors across India.
Finding of the Court:
The court found that the defendant's products were substantially similar to the plaintiff's registered designs and that the defendant had copied the plaintiff's designs with a clear intent to deceive the public. The court also found that the balance of convenience lay in favor of the plaintiff, as the defendant had only recently launched its products and the plaintiff would suffer irreparable loss if the injunction was not granted.
Issues: Whether the defendant's products were substantially similar to the plaintiff's registered designs and whether the defendant had copied the plaintiff's designs with a clear intent to deceive the public.
Ratio Decidendi: The court applied the principles laid down in the case of Wander Ltd. and Anr. v. Antox India Pvt. Ltd., 1990 SCC 727, to hold that the balance of convenience lay in favor of the plaintiff. The court also found that the plaintiff had made out a prima facie case for grant of interim injunction, as the defendant's products were substantially similar to the plaintiff's registered designs and the defendant had copied the plaintiff's designs with a clear intent to deceive the public.
Final Decision: The court granted an interim injunction restraining the defendant from manufacturing, marketing, selling (including on the online platforms) the fans under the VENICE PRIME series or those which are identical or deceptively similar to them, using the designs of the plaintiff and those which are colourable imitation or substantial reproduction of Plaintiff's get-up, layout, trade dress, colour scheme, pattern, shape, configuration etc. in the ENTICER ART-NS Stone series as aforementioned, during the pendency of the suit.
JUDGEMENT
Jyoti Singh, J. - I.A. 6258/2022 (under Order 39 Rules 1 and 2 CPC, by Plaintiff)
1. Present application has been filed on behalf of the Plaintiff seeking interim injunction inter alia restraining the Defendants and their agents etc., from manufacturing, marketing, selling (including on online platforms), using designs bearing Nos. 280666 and 328605, the VENICE PRIME series of ceiling fans or any other fan(s) series, which are identical or deceptively similar to Plaintiff's ENTICER series including ENTICER ART variants or which are a colourable imitation or substantial reproduction of Plaintiff's ENTICER/ENTICER ART series in their get-up, layout, trade-dress, colour scheme, pattern etc., in any manner, amounting to infringement, passing off, unfair competition etc.
2. It is averred in the plaint that Plaintiff was incorporated in the year 1983 and by itself and/or by its permitted user, engaged in the Electrical and Power Distribution Equipment business. Plaintiff is a Billion Dollar leading Fast Moving Electrical Goods Company having extensive production and distribution networks across India and internationally, providing a wide range of world-class industrial and consumer electrical products. Plaintiff enjoys an enviable market dominance across a wide spectrum of products, including cables and wires, motors, fans, home appliances, electric water heaters, power capacitors etc. It has expanded into personal grooming products, water purifiers, solar lighting solutions and its products can be accessed through their website https://www.havells. com/.
3. Plaintiffis stated to be a market leader in manufacture and trading of various types of fans in India and has won industry accolades on the launch of India's first energy efficient fan ES-50, indigenously designed by its R&D Department. Plaintiffs twin plant for manufacturing fans located at Haridwar, is one of the finest automated plants in the country.
4. Plaintiff's products are sold under some of the most prestigious global brands like Havells, Crabtree, Standard, Promptec and trademark Lloyd. Owing to the quality of products and quick and efficient service Plaintiff has minimum customer complaints and highest rate of customer satisfaction and has thus earned the distinction of being the preferred choice in electrical products for discerning individuals and industrial consumers, both in India and abroad. Plaintiff's products are sold in India and also exported to several foreign countries. The widespread sales and advertisements through various publicity mediums have resulted in Plaintiff's range of electrical and home appliances becoming highly popular, well-known and Plaintiff has become a household name in the country.
5. It is averred that substantial expenditure has been incurred on publicity and promotion of the products across various mediums inter alia through print, audio-visual media including television programmes, articles and write-ups in leading newspapers, magazines, web/internet etc., all of which enjoy wide viewership, circulation and readership throughout the world. Large number of celebrities endorse Plaintiff's brands and products.
6. It is stated that the ENTICER ceiling fan was indigenously conceptualised by the Plaintiff at its state-of-the-art Customer Experience and Design Centre in early 2014-15 by its employees during the course of their employment. Keeping in view the novel features of the ENTICER ceiling fan, a design application was filed by the Plaintiff on 19.02.2016, bearing design No. 280666' and was registered. Registration is valid and subsisting. In March, 2016 Plaintiff launched its ENTICER fan and on account of its superior quality and premium aesthetic features, the fan gained huge popularity amongst the members ofthe trade and public, who recognize the fan to be originating from the Plaintiff and no one else. Garnering on the immense popularity of its ENTICER series, Plaintiff raised the bar by introducing novel and unique ceiling
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