The main legal point established in the judgment is the requirement for substantial similarity and the absence of likelihood of confusion or passing off in claims of design infringement, copyright infringement, and passing off. The court also emphasized the consideration of the balance of convenience and the ability of either party to be compensated in monetary terms in deciding on the grant of interim injunction.

The Order of the Court was as follows :

Britannia Industries Limited having its Registered Office at Calcutta, the plaintiff herein, pending the suit in C. S. No. 939 of 1999 seeking the relief of permanent injunction, mandatory injunction, etc. has filed three applications in O.A. Nos. 742, 743 and 744 of 1999 praying for interim reliefs as against Sara Lee Bakery India Private Limited, Chennai, the defendant herein.

2. The prayer in O.A. No. 742 of 1999 is to grant interim injunction restraining the respondent/defendant from committing the acts of piracy of the applicant's registered design of its biscuits by the manufacture of the impugned product "Milk Wala"" Milk Cream Biscuits" bearing the design which is identical with or similar to the applicant's design.

3. In O.A. No. 743 of 1999 the relief sought for is for the grant of interim injunction restraining the respondent from reproducing and publishing the biscuit wrapper which is deceptively similarly or reproduction of the features of the applicant's biscuit wrapper.

4. O.A. No. 744 of 1999 relates to the prayer for grant of order of injunction restraining the respondent from manufacturing or dealing in biscuits having the shape/design identical with or deceptively similar to the applicant's biscuit shape and passing off.

5. This Court, while ordering notice on 9-12-1999 was pleased to grant interim injunction for a limited period. On service of notice, the respondent entered appearance through his counsel and filed counter. Thereafter both the parties filed several rejoinders and reply affidavits along with the typed sets.

6. For disposal of these three applicants, the counsel for the parties were heard at length.

7. Before referring to the respective contentions raising various issues, it would be better to refer to the case of each of the parties.

8. The case of the applicant/plaintiff, in brief, is as follows :-

"(a) The applicant is a company engaged in the business of manufacturing and marketing various food items, such as bread, biscuits, confectionary, cakes , etc. One of the products manufactured by the applicant is a biscuit by name "Milk Bikis Milk Cream" which was launched in Oct. 1996. The same is available to the customers as a pack of 100 gms and 200 gms in a distinctive wrapper.The applicant's biscuit is circular in shape with funny face on one side. The other side of the biscuit is plain. In between the two biscuits is a filing - filled with milk cream, a round nose and the mouth in the shape of a smile with two teeth visible - the two teeth being filled with cream. The novelty of the biscuit lies in the shape and the configuration of the face on the one side and the plain biscuit on the other side with milk cream filled in between the biscuits. The biscuit is packed in the wrapper. A navy blue background with stars, on which 'the trademark "BRITANNIA" is written. The slogan : "Eat healthy, Think Better" appears below the red pentagonal device. Below this, is the name of the Biscuit Milk Bikis in red colour with the words "Milk Cream" underneath. On the right portion of the wrapper is a funny face on the upper portion of the biscuit with the design mentioned above. In the lower portion, it is shown that the milk is being poured from a jar. Rectangular lines in yellow bordered in red surround the funny face.

(b) Since the design is novel and original, the applicant registered the said design in Class 12 of the IV Schedule of the Designs Rules on 11-4-1996 vide Design No. 1 71091. It has also registered its copyright in the work "Britannia Milk Bikis Milk Cream" with the copyright office and the registration number is A-55541/98. The applicant's product has been manufactured and marketed ever since Oct. 1996 and are widely known in the market, as the same was popularised through publicity by spending considerable amount.

(c) At this stage, the respondent/defendant introduced the offending product as "Milk Wala" which is similar to the product of the appl