Delhi High Court Grants Interim Relief To Owner Of 'Cars 24' In Trademark Infringement Suit

The Delhi High Court has granted interim relief to Global Car Group Ltd., owner of the brand Cars 24, against alleged infringement of its trademarks by the Defendants.Finding a prima facie case in favour of the Plaintiff, Justice Sanjeev Narula granted an ex-parte ad-interim injunction in favour of Global Car under Order 39 Rules 1, and 2 r/w Section 151 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.The Court further directed the Defendants are directed to remove/ delete the social media accounts and listings on third-party e-commerce websites maintained under the infringing marks which are identical or deceptively similar to the Plaintiffs'. Prima Facie Case Plaintiff, Global Car Group Ltd., an e-commerce company, filed a suit to restrain Defendant business from adopting the word 'Drivers24' and the logo 'Drivers24'. The same was stated to be deceptively similar to the Plaintiff's trademarks. Plaintiff alleged that Defendant initially filed an application seeking registration of its mark. However, the same was subsequently abandoned. Further, the colour combination used by Defendant was stated to be identical to the Plaintiffs. Defendant did not desist from using the mark despite a 'Cease and Desist' notice. A comparison of the marks of the Plaintiff and Defendant, as submitted, is reproduced below:Plaintiff admitted that the words "Drivers" and "24" did not vest any exclusive rights. However, when put together, they posed a likelihood of confusion and association in the minds of consumers of average intelligence. This would be due to mistakenly attributing the mark with the distinctive combination of "Cars" and "24" words in Plaintiff's mark. Plaintiff submitted the reputable nature of its business by drawing out annual sales turnover to the tune of Rs. 30000 crore and substantial investments in advertising/promotional activities in India. In light of the above, Plaintiff alleged that Defendant's identical business and adoption of "Drivers24" word constitutes infringement under Section 29 of the Trademarks Act, 1999, violation of common law right of passing off, dilution of the Plaintiff's goodwill, and unfair competition. As Defendant had not appeared before the Court, the Court proceeded ex-parte. The Court found a prima facie case in favor of Plaintiff. The Court ticked off the three elements for issuing ad interim injunction: a favourable balance of convenience, irreparable loss, and prima facie case. Order The Court ordered Defendant the following till the next date of hearing: 1. Restrain adopting the infringing marks, namely – 'Drivers24' (word per se) and the Drivers24 logo, i.e., any other trademark/ tradename/ trade dress or logo/ device, identical or identical deceptively similar to the '24 Formative Marks' of the Plaintiff. 2. Delete the social media accounts and listings on third-party e-commerce websites maintained under the infringing marks identical or deceptively similar to the Plaintiffs' '24 Formative Marks'. 3. Suspend their mobile application and website. Case Details Case Title: Global Car Group Ltd. & Anr. V. Mohit Goyal & Anr.Case No: Cs(COMM) 709/2021 & I.A. 17520/2021 Coram: Justice Sanjeev Narula Citation: 2022 LiveLaw (Del) 44Click Here To Read/ Download Order

Delhi High Court Grants Interim Relief To Owner Of 'Cars 24' In Trademark Infringement Suit

Prateek Chakraverty

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