Trademark Infringement: Delhi High Court Grants Permanent Injunction in Favour of Louis Vuitton

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In an attempt to curb trademark infringement in the luxury fashion and accessories industry, recently in the case of Louis Vuitton Malletier v. Futuretimes Technology India Private Limited & Ors.1, the Delhi High Court granted permanent injunction in favour of the Plaintiff, restraining the Defendants from manufacturing, offering for sale directly or indirectly any goods including face masks etc., bearing the registered marks of Louis Vuitton on its portal.

Background

The Plaintiff alleged that the Defendants were operating a website; www.clubfactory.com, a Chinese based portal wherein goods bearing the Plaintiff’s well-known “Louis Vuitton” mark and other device marks were being sold in violation of the Plaintiff’s trademark rights. In fact, the Plaintiff pointed out that the Defendants had stopped appearing or contesting the matter after several hearings.

It is worth noting that in July 2020, the Court had obtained an undertaking from the Defendants that upon being notified, the URLs upon which the infringing products were being made available would be removed. However, the Plaintiff claimed that the Defendants had failed to comply with this undertaking and had continued to sell their products on the portal in a hidden manner.

Decision

While the website had been banned by the Indian government during the pandemic and consequently, the Court granted a permanent injunction in favour of the Plaintiff. The Court ordered that the Defendants’ counsel provide the Plaintiff with the email address of the Defendants with whom correspondence was taking place, the names and other relevant information, including contact details as well as the bank account of the Defendants from where legal fees had been received by the Defendants’ counsel.

Further, the Court directed the Department of Telecommunications and the Ministry of Electronic and Information Technology to issue instructions to block the impugned website.

Comment

The internet has provided an easy means to sell infringing products and therefore, the Delhi High Court’s decision is yet another example of the inclination of the judiciary towards bringing justice to the legitimate intellectual property right holders.

For any queries, please feel free to write to Ms. Vrinda Sehgal at vrinda@iprattorneys.com.

1. Louis Vuitton Malletier V. Futuretimes Technology India Private Limited & Ors. CS (Comm) 222/2020 & I.A. 3002/2022 Https://Www.Livelaw.In/Pdf_Upload/Lv-413344.Pdf