A ‘Legal Issues Seminar-General IP’ (LIS-GIP) was conducted by Shreya Das, Associate, on “Whether Expenditure incurred for procuring Software from a Non-Resident is Taxable as Royalty?”. The seminar delved into the important legal provisions under Income Tax Act, 1961 on Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) and Royalty, and precedents on the applicability of TDS on payment made to a non-resident for software purchases in India. Specifically, the seminar looked into the recent landmark decision of the Supreme Court in Engineering Analysis Centre of Excellence Private Limited v. CIT [Civil Appeal Nos. 8733-8734 of 2018], in which it was held that the payment made to a non-resident for procuring software does not include Royalty, and hence cannot be deducted as TDS.

The presentation can be accessed here.

ALG’s in-house cinephiles got together virtually last Saturday to discuss John Lee Hancock’s latest psychological thriller film, “The Little Things”. With a deep dive into the interesting characters, screenplay, theme and direction of this dark period film, the team travelled back in time to the 90s (when Hancock originally wrote the movie script)! The session also involved friendly quips about thriller movies today as against those in the 90s.

During last week’s Practice Work Shop (PWS) Session, Aditya Mittal, Trainee Associate, led a discussion on whether India should invoke Compulsory Licensing provisions to tackle the challenges posed by COVID-19. The session saw an engaging discussion with attorneys expressing their views on the advantages and disadvantages of invoking the provisions of Compulsory Licensing. The session also saw some interesting discussion on whether India should push more aggressively for a Patent Waiver at the WTO and what should be the role of the judiciary in these testing times.

Last Friday, ALG Attorneys welcomed the newest joinees – Samreen, Ashok, Aditya and Sanjukta – by indulging in some retail therapy. No, we did not go shopping, we were selling! The Attorneys participated in a spirited and hotly contested game of ‘Sale or Fail’. From the Infinity Stones of Marvel’s Avengers fame to the innocent doll from the movie Annabelle, the teams brought their best pitches to try to sell each other famous (and some really difficult to sell) pop culture props.

ALG attorneys Manavi Jain, Dishti Titus and Pranay Bali attended INTA’s 2021 Call (India) with INTA President Tiki Dare and CEO Etienne Sanz de Acedo.

The call was a thoughtful initiative by INTA to check in with its Indian members and to connect and share experiences and insights about the past year. The discussion centred around the impact of the pandemic and the ways in which the members have coped with it. ALG attorneys shared their insights on working from home, vaccinations, mental health and picking up new hobbies. It was heartening to hear the INTA community share their stories of adapting, growing and looking ahead to a brighter future.

We thank Tiki, Etienne, Gauri, Shelja and everyone involved in organizing this insightful session.