A ‘Legal Issues Seminar – General IP’ (LIS-GIP) was conducted by Tanisha Agarwal, Associate, on “Does Moment Marketing Violate Celebrities’ Personality Rights?”. The seminar explored the concepts of moment marketing and personality rights, as well as the relevant rule under the ASCII Code. The session delved into the divergent views taken by courts on the issue and explored relevant judicial decisions in this respect. The session concluded with an interesting discussion on whether there is a need for a statutory amendment to recognize unauthorized promotional activities by brands which violate celebrities’ personality rights.

The presentation can be accessed here.

News Release, June 30 2022, New Delhi

ALG is pleased to announce the promotion of 5 of its lawyers, and the elevation of Pranay Bali to partner. With this, the partnership strength of ALG grows to five, and the percentage of women amongst partners and principals at the firm grows to over 55%.

“We are thrilled to announce the well-deserved elevation and promotions of these incredibly talented group of lawyers spanning different parts of the country, reinforcing our commitment to both merit and diversity at the firm. Pranay Bali has played a pivotal role in the firm’s success and growth over the years. His elevation to partnership is a recognition of his tireless dedication to advancing the firm and our clients’ interests” says Managing Partner Sheja Ehtesham.

On his elevation to partnership, Pranay Bali says “It is an absolute honour to have become a partner at ALG. My experience with the firm has been enriching and rewarding, and we share the same vision for the future. I am excited to take on this role and further facilitate the growth of our immensely talented team, while also enhancing the value we provide to our clients.”

The other promotions at the firm include Nayantara Malhotra & Sneha Tandon, who have been promoted to the position of Principal. Senior Associate promotions include Aishwarya Pande and Arghya Samaddar based out of New Delhi, and Samreen Iboo Sait based out of Tamil Nadu.

About ALG India Law Offices LLP

Ranked amongst the world’s top 1,000 law firms for both enforcement & litigation, and prosecution & strategy, ALG is a top-tier law firm having offices in New Delhi and Hyderabad.

Founded in 2000, the firm’s law practice in India is recognised for its eminent quality and enviable innovativeness by major awards, notable industry rankings and listings, internationally as well as in India. Some of these recognitions include World Trademark Review’s WTR 1000 Rankings 2022 and 2021, India’s Leading IP Lawyers 2021 by Asian Legal Business Awards, India’s Top IP Experts by AsiaIP 2022, and Leading IP Practices by Legal 100 Asia 2021.

ALG has come to be particularly recognised for its understanding of the industries it serves, and its highly personalised services and strategic insights as a consequence. ALG takes special pride in the diversity of its members, who among themselves cover more than 15 languages, and over 50% of whom are women.

During last week’s Practice Work Shop (PWS) Session, Gazal Sancheti, Trainee Associate, led a discussion on “Can the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library help prevent misappropriation of traditional cultural expressions?”. The session saw an insightful discussion on whether the closed-access model, documentation and benefit-sharing mechanisms of the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library would help prevent misappropriation of traditional cultural expressions. The session delved into the advantages and disadvantages of documentation of such expressions. The session concluded with some intriguing ideas on alternative mechanisms that could be used to protect traditional cultural expressions.

A ‘Legal Issues Seminar- General IP (LIS-GIP)’ was conducted by Sannidhi Mahapatra, Associate, on “Can a Suit of Passing Off Be Instituted in Respect of Unregistered Geographical Indications?”. The seminar explored the legal provisions that can be interpreted to determine whether whether a suit of passing off can be instituted with respect to unregistered geographical indications. The session delved into the divergent views taken by courts on the issue and explored relevant judicial decisions in this respect. The session concluded with an interesting discussion on scenarios in which trans-border reputation may enable the holder of an international but lesser-known GI to institute a suit of passing off against a domestic producer using a similar GI.

The presentation can be accessed here.

During last week’s Practice Work Shop (PWS) Session, Harshita Agarwal, Trainee Associate, led a discussion on “Would Grant of Patents to Conversational Chatbots in India Raise a Privacy Concern?”. The discussion delved into the impact of granting patents to conversational chatbots that are modeled after dead people and whether creating such chatbots with a huge amount of personal data would raise privacy a concern in India. The session also saw an insightful discussion on the ethical issues surrounding the creation of such chatbots and whether consent from the family members of the deceased would mitigate the privacy concerns. The session concluded with an interesting discussion on whether grant of patents to such AI-based chatbots is ethical and in public interest.