Bombay High Court Refuses Interim Injunction To UTS; Says Prior Registration Of Domain Name Is Valid Defence

The Bombay High Court has dismissed an interim plea filed by Universal Test Solutions LLP, declining to grant interim relief in a trademark, copyright and passing-off dispute against its former partner Punam Kumari Singh and others.

In a judgment dated March 11, 2026, Justice Sharmila U. Deshmukh held that the plaintiff had not made out a prima facie case to restrain the defendants from using the domain name uts-global.com, the acronym “UTS”, the corporate name ODC Universal Technological Solutions Private Limited, or the software alleged to have been copied from the LLP.

During the hearing, Singh and his husband stated that they were no longer using certain disputed marks. In view of that statement, the court limited the interim consideration to the use of the domain name, the corporate name, the acronym "UTS," and the allegation of software piracy.

The LLP relied on a 2012 MoU and the subsequent LLP agreement to contend that all intellectual property connected with the business, including trademarks and software developed earlier, vested in the partnership. It alleged that after Singh was expelled from the firm, the defendants began operating rival ventures using similar names, the acronym “UTS”, the domain name uts-global.com, and software said to have been derived from the plaintiff's source code.

The court was not persuaded by the claim relating to the domain name. The material on record showed that uts-global.com had been registered in the personal name of Singh's husband in February 2010, well before the LLP was formed in October 2012.

There was no document to show that the domain name had ever been transferred to the plaintiff. In these circumstances, the court held that the earlier registration and use constituted a valid defence under Section 34 of the Trademarks Act at the interim stage.

On the allegation that the defendants' corporate name infringed the registered mark, the court examined Section 29(5) of the Trade Marks Act, which deals with use of a registered mark as part of a trade name.

Justice Deshmukh observed that the provision operates in a narrow field and requires use of the registered mark itself. The name ODC Universal Technological Solutions Private Limited was not identical to the registered mark UTS – Universal Test Solutions, and the test of deceptive similarity or dominant feature could not be applied while considering infringement under this provision.

The copyright claim also did not succeed at the interim stage. The court said the allegation of software piracy was based on bare assertions. In disputes involving computer programs and source code, technical comparison, usually through an independent expert, is necessary before a prima facie finding can be recorded. Screenshots and demo videos were held insufficient to establish infringement.

The passing-off claim failed for similar reasons. The LLP was required to show goodwill, misrepresentation, and resulting damage, but the documents placed on record did not support such a case. The invoices relied on were limited in number, and the material did not demonstrate sufficient reputation in the mark on the date of the alleged infringement.

With no prima facie case made out on any of the grounds, the High Court dismissed the interim application.