Recently, ALG Attorneys got together online to welcome the newest addition to the team- Harshit, in an interactive Ice-breaker session. The Attorneys enjoyed a bustling hour solving riddles and hunting down objects in a scavenger hunt with a twist – the work-from-home edition!

We started the ALG Medley series in celebration of our diversity. For the first activity under the series, ALG members shared a line or word(s) in their native language. We had no rules, it could be anything that they liked.

Every week since, we share with you members’ responses in their native languages. This week Ashwani Balayan, Nisha, Aishwarya and Suneeta share lines that they love.

We started the ALG Medley series in celebration of our diversity. For the first activity under the series, ALG members shared a line or word(s) in their native language. We had no rules, it could be anything that they liked.

Every week since, we share with you members’ responses in their native languages. This week Sneha, Nishat, Laxmi and Kavita share their favourite lines.

A ‘Legal Issues Seminar-General IP’ (LIS-GIP) was conducted by Sanjukta Kaushik, Associate, on “Whether “Invisible Use” of Trademarks as Keywords amounts to Infringement/Passing Off under Trademark Law?”. The seminar delved into the legal complications arising from spamdexing and discussed relevant statutory provisions and judicial pronouncements on passing off and dilution of trademarks that are unauthorizedly used as keyword-meta-tags. The seminar specifically looked into whether the “invisible use” of trademarks as keywords, despite being covert, amounts to “use” under the Trade Marks Act, 1999, and also explored the role played by the Doctrine of Fair Use in this connection. The session concluded with some interesting questions and inputs on the intent of use of such trademarks as keywords and the scope of liability imposed upon intermediaries.

The presentation can be accessed here.

During last week’s Practice Work Shop (PWS) Session, Shreya Kunwar, Trainee Associate, led a discussion on whether the Covid-19 pandemic has acted as a catalyst in increasing counterfeit products in markets worldwide. The session witnessed an engrossing discussion on the various measures that can be taken by IP owners to combat counterfeiting. The session further delved into the alternate mechanisms that could be adopted to safeguard the interests of brand owners during a pandemic. The session concluded with some interesting exchange of views on the urgent need for creation and adoption of stringent measures to prevent counterfeit products, especially pharmaceuticals, in the global markets.