Delhi High Court: A Single Judge Bench of C. Hari Shankar, J. granted permanent injunction to Lifelong Online Retail (P) Ltd for its mark ‘Lifelong’ and restrained the defendants from dealing in any goods under the mark ‘Lifelong’ to cause confusion or deception leading to passing off or unfair trade practice.
Background
The plaintiff asserted proprietorial rights in respect of the trade mark ‘Lifelong’, which was registered in favour of the plaintiff under Classes 7, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 28 of the Schedule to the Trademark Rules in respect of various kinds of consumer durables. Further, it was asserted that the plaintiff had accumulated considerable goodwill in respect of its marks, ‘Lifelong’. On the other hand, the defendant had applied for registration of the trade mark ‘Lifelong’ for beard clippers, razors, hair clippers and depilatory appliances, electric trimmers etc. with the Registry of Trade Marks on a proposed to be used basis in 2021. Therefore, it was submitted by the plaintiff that the proposed trade mark would infringe the plaintiff’s registered trade mark.
Submissions on behalf of the Defendant
Counsel for the defendant submitted that the defendant had never begun using the impugned mark and undertook to not use the impugned mark for any goods or services. Further, it was submitted that the defendant would withdraw the application for registration of the impugned mark from the Registry of Trademarks.
Analysis, Law, and Decision
The Court opined that since the defendant had undertaken to not use the plaintiff’s mark, therefore, the grievance of the plaintiff in the present case stands relieved. Therefore, the Court granted a decree of permanent injunction in favour of the plaintiff and restrained the defendant from manufacturing, selling, distributing, offering for sale, advertising, directly or indirectly dealing in any goods, under the impugned mark ‘Lifelong’ or any other mark as may be identical to or deceptively similar with the plaintiff’s registered trade mark ‘Lifelong’, to cause:
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infringement of the plaintiff’s trade mark;
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confusion or deception leading to passing-off of the defendant’s goods as those of the plaintiff;
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confusion or deception leading to unfair trade practice.
The Court passed an order of permanent injunction to restrain the defendant from not writing to any third party including the e-commerce platforms to take down the plaintiff’s products having the plaintiff’s trade mark ‘Lifelong’.
[Lifelong Online Retail (P) Ltd. v. Anita Gupta, 2022 SCC OnLine Del 4371, decided on 8-12-2022]
Advocates who appeared in this case :
For the Plaintiff: Advocate Ankur Sangal;
Advocate Sucheta Roy;
Advocate Trisha Nag;
For the Defendant: Advocate Deepika Pokharia.