Delhi High Court Sets Aside Rejection Of South Korean Pharma's Patent Application, Orders Fresh Review

The Delhi High Court has set aside a Controller of Patents order refusing South Korean pharmaceutical company Hanmi Pharm Co. Ltd.'s patent application for a pharmaceutical compound and its manufacturing process, finding that the Controller had entirely failed to consider the process claims submitted by the applicant. Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, in an order dated May 11, 2026, remanded the matter to the Patent Office for fresh consideration. The Court directed that Hanmi Pharm be given a fresh...

Delhi High Court Upholds Rejection Of Patent Application For Counterfeit Product Detection System

The Delhi High Court has dismissed an appeal against the rejection of a patent application for a counterfeit product detection system, holding that the invention failed to meet statutory disclosure requirements because the complete specification did not sufficiently explain how it would actually work. Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, in a judgment delivered on May 11, held that while the invention proposed a consumer-friendly mechanism to verify genuine products using visible and hidden codes, the...

Pending IBC Proceedings Do Not Bar Arbitration Referral: Calcutta HC In SREI-Orissa Steel Dispute

The Calcutta High Court has referred a dispute between SREI group entities and Orissa Steel Expressway Private Limited to arbitration. It held that objections based on pending insolvency proceedings, allegations of fraud, and the status of a non-signatory claimant must be decided by the arbitral tribunal, not at the stage of appointing an arbitrator. “Thus, the question of arbitrability of the disputes and supremacy of IBC over the arbitral proceeding, will have to be decided by the learned...

Delhi HC Upholds Arbitral Award Limiting Payment To 25% For Cables Laid In Existing Ducts In BSNL Project

The Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed Sterlite Technologies Ltd.'s challenge to an arbitral award that limited its payment to 25% of the quoted service cost for optical fiber cables laid through other empty ducts already laid in the same multi-duct trench under a defence telecom project. Justice Avneesh Jhingan held that Clause 28(iii) of the purchase order independently governed the issue, regardless of the dispute over the applicability of the tender clause dealing with government ducts. ...

Karnataka HC Says It Cannot 'Micromanage' CIRP Against Gulam Mustafa Enterprises Before NCLT Bengaluru

The Karnataka High Court has recently observed that it cannot micromanage proceedings before the National Company Law Tribunal by directing it to hear a company's applications in a particular order while hearing a petition filed by real estate developer Gulam Mustafa Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. “At the outset, this Court is of the considered view that the relief sought by the petitioner, in substance, amounts to inviting this Court to micromanage the proceedings pending before the adjudicating...

Delhi High Court Protects Select CityWalk, Bars Use of Deceptively Similar “Global CityWalk” Mark

The Delhi High Court on 8 May granted an ex-parte ad-interim injunction restraining a real estate company from using the mark “Global CityWalk” for its proposed commercial project, holding that the impugned mark was deceptively similar to the registered trademarks of Select CityWalk. Justice Tushar Rao Gedela, while allowing the application, restrained Garg Realtech from using the impugned mark pending adjudication of the suit. He held: “A comparison of the competing marks leaves no manner of...

Delhi HC Sets Aside Disqualification Of Bid For Arbitration Centre Work Over 'Hyper-Technical' Objections

The Delhi High Court has set aside the disqualification of a company's technical bid for interior and fit-out work at the India International Arbitration Centre (IIAC), holding that “hyper-technical” objections relating to solvency certificates cannot defeat the objective of a fair and competitive tender process. A division bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Amit Mahajan observed that the exclusion of bidders on a “myopic view or on hyper-technical grounds” would undermine the very...

Delhi High Court Restrains Electronics Retailer From Screening Films On TVs Without Copyright Society's Licence

The Delhi High Court has recently temporarily restrained an electronics retail chain from playing films from copyright society Cinefil Producers Performance Limited's repertoire at its Delhi stores without a licence.It has also directed the retailer to suspend satellite, cable, and internet-enabled transmission systems used for such screenings until it obtains a valid licence.Justice Tushar Rao Gedela passed the order on May 7, 2026, in a suit filed by Cinefil Producers Performance Limited...

ITC Claims Filed Before 30 November 2021 Cannot Be Rejected on Limitation Ground: Karnataka High Court

The Karnataka High Court has held that Input Tax Credit (ITC) claims rejected as time-barred under Section 16(4) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 must be reconsidered where GST returns for the relevant financial years were filed on or before 30 November 2021, in view of the retrospective insertion of Section 16(5) of the CGST Act. A Single Judge Bench of Justice S. Sunil Dutt Yadav allowed the writ petition filed by ABE Security Mechanics Private Limited, set aside the show cause...

Pre-Arbitration Mutual Discussion Clauses Are Directory, Not Mandatory: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on 7 May held that failure to engage in pre-arbitral mutual discussions cannot bar invocation of an arbitration clause or appointment of an arbitrator under Section 11(6) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, since clauses requiring parties to first attempt amicable settlement are directory and not mandatory. Justice Mini Pushkarna appointed Advocate Isha Bhalla as sole arbitrator to adjudicate disputes between Orix Corporation India Ltd. and Peters Surgical India...

Bombay High Court Restrains Circulation Of Berger Paint Ad Suggesting Asian Paints Product Was A 'Fraud'

The Bombay High Court has restrained the circulation of a Berger Paints advertisement comparing its Easy Clean product with an Asian Paints paint, after finding a prima facie case of product disparagement and flagging a meme in the clip that exclaimed “Fraud!”.Justice Arif S. Doctor held that a “clear case of disparagement” was made out. The ad-interim order was passed on May 8 in a commercial intellectual property suit filed by Asian Paints Limited against Namgial Enterprise and others,...

Gujarat High Court Says Arbitral Hearing Venue Cannot Alter Contractual Seat, Rejects Kirloskar's Plea

The Gujarat High Court on 8 May held that the juridical “seat” of arbitration cannot be shifted merely because arbitral proceedings were conducted elsewhere or because the arbitral tribunal recorded such a statement in procedural minutes, where the contract required any variation to be made only through a formal written amendment. A Division Bench of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice D.N. Ray upheld a Commercial Court order refusing to shift the arbitration seat from Ankleshwar to...