{"id":6198,"date":"2021-06-17T06:05:18","date_gmt":"2021-06-17T06:05:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/?p=6198"},"modified":"2021-06-17T06:07:47","modified_gmt":"2021-06-17T06:07:47","slug":"concept-of-deceptive-similarity-in-trademarks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/concept-of-deceptive-similarity-in-trademarks\/","title":{"rendered":"Concept of Deceptive Similarity in Trademarks &#8211; An Overview"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap\">A\nsimilar deceptive Trademark is an idea that can be understood as the Trademark\ncreated, almost the same or a look-alike of an already in existence Trademark\nto deceive and create confusion among the clients. This concept has been\ndiscussed in the <strong><em>Trademarks Act, 1999<\/em><\/strong>. As per <strong><em>Section 2(h) of the Act<\/em><\/strong>,\na Trademark should be considered deceptively similar to another Trademark if it\nnearly resembles the other mark as likely to mislead or create any confusion in\npeoples&#8217; minds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_65 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-light-blue ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2e9885c4af3\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2e9885c4af3\"  aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/concept-of-deceptive-similarity-in-trademarks\/#What_is_the_Meaning_of_Deceptive_Similarity_in_Trademarks\" title=\"What is\nthe Meaning of Deceptive Similarity in Trademarks?\">What is\nthe Meaning of Deceptive Similarity in Trademarks?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/concept-of-deceptive-similarity-in-trademarks\/#Vital_Cases_Regarding_the_Judicial_View_in_Deceptive_Similarity_Matter\" title=\"Vital Cases Regarding the Judicial View in\nDeceptive Similarity Matter\">Vital Cases Regarding the Judicial View in\nDeceptive Similarity Matter<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/concept-of-deceptive-similarity-in-trademarks\/#Conclusion\" title=\"Conclusion\">Conclusion<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_is_the_Meaning_of_Deceptive_Similarity_in_Trademarks\"><\/span>What is\nthe Meaning of Deceptive Similarity in Trademarks?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap\">The idea of deceptive similarity has broadly recognised as one of the grounds for infringement of Trademark under the various Trademark regimes. Under the Indian lawful system, the misleading similarity is also considered as the ground for not granting a <a href=\"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/trademark-registration\" class=\"text-primary\"><strong>Trademark Registration<\/strong><\/a> to a candidate by the Trademark Registrar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However,\nthe Act of Trademark doesn\u2019t ascertain any specific criteria which can decide\nthe range &amp; scope of this phrase \u201cdeceptive similarity\u201d. To remove the gap,\nit is essential to note a judicial stand on the cases concerning the proposed\nmatter. For this, the Indian Judicial Courts have deal with different cases\nproviding landmark judgements &amp; rules in the matters of misleading\nsimilarity. For determining cases of the intellectual properties &amp;\nmisleading similarity, the principle of phonetic &amp; visual similarity,\ngoodwill, reputation, a test of likelihood, etc., have been identified as\ncriteria to test the idea of misleading similarity by the Judiciary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Vital_Cases_Regarding_the_Judicial_View_in_Deceptive_Similarity_Matter\"><\/span>Vital Cases Regarding the Judicial View in\nDeceptive Similarity Matter<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The policy of misleading similarity is broadly used in the Judicial Courts as the <strong>Trademark violation<\/strong><sup><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Trademark_infringement\" class=\"text-primary\"><strong>[1]<\/strong><\/a><\/sup> matters. Trademark plays an essential in a business, and its goodwill of high need for safeguarding the Trademark from being infringed &amp; misused. Judiciary has taken curiosity in the matters of IPRs and their principles. The Judiciary has also focused on the matter after the problems have caused concerning the deceptive similarity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nguidelines have been given by the judicial decisions to make adjudication of\ncases of Trademark violation much smoother. It is obvious from the cases, as\ndiscussed below that the courts are going beyond the literal meanings of the\nlegislations to deliver justice and protecting the rights of the traders &amp;\nsafeguarding the customer&#8217;s interests as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Case: SM Dyechem Ltd. V.\nCadbury (India) Ltd.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In\nthis case, the applicant has commenced a business of selling &amp; chips under\nthe Trademark name \u201cPIKNIK\u201d. Later on, the defendant has also initiated the\nbusiness of chocolates under the brand name &#8220;PICNIC&#8221;. A suit was\nfiled alleging a Trademark violation has been done. The Court held that the\nTrade Marks have not been in a group of deceptive similarity as they are\ndifferent in look and has a different composition of words.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Case: Govind Yadav &amp; Anr V.\nM\/S Allied Blenders &amp; Distillers Pvt. Ltd.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In\nthis case, the candidate claimed that the Trademark of defendant \u201cFauji\u201d has\ndeceptive similarity as the applicant has &#8220;Officer&#8217;s Choice&#8221;. The\nclaim has been made on the level of similarity of a concept in making of the\nTrademarks as a term &#8220;Fauji&#8221;, which means a military officer in Hindi\ntranslation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But,\nboth parties are in the alcoholic beverages business. Moreover, the packaging\nof both the bottles was also the same. The trade dress plays a vital role in\ndeciding the cases of Trademark violation. In this case, the Court has held\nthat there is no misleading similarity between the Trademarks &#8220;Officer&#8217;s\nChoice&#8221; &amp; &#8220;Fauji&#8221;. Hence, the Trademark violation suitcase\nwas dispersed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Case: M\/S Subhash Trading v.\nM\/S Lakme Ltd.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In\nthis case, the candidate was a cosmetic products seller under the name of the\nTrademark &#8220;Lakme&#8221;, and the accused was also selling the same products\nunder the name of &#8220;LikeMe&#8221;. The case of a Trademark violation was\nfiled by the applicant. The High Court held that the names of the brand have\nnot been in a group of deceptive similarity. These both brand names are two separate\nmarks with the difference in the spelling &amp; its appearance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Case: Cadila Pharmaceutical\nLtd. V, Cadila Health Care Ltd.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In\nthis matter, the Supreme Court has held come guidelines for adjudication of\nmatters concerning the deceptive similarity in Trademarks. In this particular\ncase, the parties of the case were the successors of a Cadila group. The\nargument has arisen on a problem of selling of the medicine by a defendant\nunder the name called &#8220;Falcitab&#8221;, which was similar to the medicine\nname that has been manufactured by the applicant also under the name of the\n&#8220;Falcigo&#8221;.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Both\nsuch drugs were used to treat similar disease. Hence, the disputation was\nraised that the brand name of the defendant is creating a misunderstanding\namong the consumers. The injunction was pleaded by a candidate. As in cover,\nthe defendant has claimed that the prefix &#8220;Falci&#8221; has been derived\nfrom a disease name, i.e., Falcipharam malaria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nCourt has noticed that because of a diversified population in the nation, the\ninfrastructure of the medical profession is not so broad, so there can be\nprobabilities of medical carelessness. But, it is vital that confusion of\nTrademarks should be severely prevented in the case of drugs &amp;\npharmaceuticals. Hence, the Court held that while name the medical items, one\nshould take more care. The brand name, hence, being phonetically the same and\nwill amount to deceptively same. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Conclusion\"><\/span>Conclusion<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Trademarks play an essential role in creating a brand name popular and goodwill of any business. Not only does it aid in establishing the brand value however it also helps in generating revenue. Being such important, the Trademark is unprotected from getting misused or infringed. One such way of Trademark is making similar deceptive Trademarks. Therefore, to avoid deceptive similarity and register your Trademark with a distinctive name. Contact an expert or professional who will help you with Trademark Registration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"text-left\"><b>Read our article<\/b>:<mark style=\"background: #fffd03 !important;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/trademark-litigation-on-infringement-passing-off\/\">An Overview of Trademark Litigation on Infringement &amp; Passing-Off\n<\/a><\/mark><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A similar deceptive Trademark is an idea that can be understood as the Trademark created, almost the same or a look-alike of an already in existence Trademark to deceive and create confusion among the clients. This concept has been discussed in the Trademarks Act, 1999. As per Section 2(h) of the Act, a Trademark should [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":6202,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[72],"tags":[705],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6198"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6198"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6198\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6211,"href":"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6198\/revisions\/6211"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6202"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6198"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6198"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swaritadvisors.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6198"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}