Trademark Suits Cannot Be Tried By Courts Below District Court: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court has ruled that a trademark infringement suit cannot be tried by a court below the District Court merely because its pecuniary value falls within the jurisdiction of a Munsiff Court.

Justice Mohammed Nias C.P. held that “Given the above, the District Court, for the purposes of Section 134, has to be regarded as the lowest grade competent court to try a trade mark suit, under Section 15 CPC. To hold otherwise would result in a court inferior to the District Court ultimately trying a suit which Section 134 expressly prohibits from being instituted and would render the statutory mandate that the suit be instituted before a District Court largely otiose."

The ruling came in a challenge by Cutis International Cosmetics Clinic and its directors to the maintainability of a trademark suit filed by Cutis Institute of Medicine and Surgery.

The suit sought an injunction and damages for alleged infringement of a registered trademark. Its total value was ₹5.10 lakh.

The petitioners argued that although the suit had to be instituted before the District Court under Section 134 of the Trade Marks Act, its pecuniary value meant that it could only be tried by a Munsiff Court.

The court rejected the argument. It held that Section 9 of the Code of Civil Procedure does not itself create a distinction between the court where a suit is instituted and the court competent to try it. Such a distinction can arise through a lawful transfer or a special statutory provision.

Section 134 of the Trade Marks Act specifically prevents a trademark suit from being instituted in a court inferior to the District Court having jurisdiction to try it. The judge held that allowing the suit to be transferred to a lower court for trial on pecuniary grounds would defeat that statutory restriction.

The court also held that the words “having jurisdiction” in Section 134 do not necessarily mean “having pecuniary jurisdiction.” Section 134 operates as a special jurisdictional provision overriding the ordinary CPC position to the extent specified.

The court further ruled that the suit could not be instituted in the District Court merely as a formality and then transferred to a lower court for trial based on its pecuniary value.

The revision petition was accordingly dismissed. The court held that “the only court where the plaintiff could have instituted the suit was the District Court.”