Shashwati Chowdhury
Published on: July 27, 2022 at 20:16 IST
The Delhi High Court has permanently restrained Neeraj Food Products from using the mark “James” or “James Bond” for its products, putting an end to a long-running trademark infringement dispute involving the well-known chocolate confection Cadbury Gems.
For infringing the rights of the makers of Cadbury Gems, the court additionally imposed fine on Neeraj Food Products for more than Rs 15 lakh.
In 2005, Mondelez India Foods Private Limited, formerly known as Cadbury India Limited, filed a lawsuit in court, alleging that Neeraj Food Products, or the defendant, had launched a chocolate product under the mark “James Bond” with a colour scheme, layout, and arrangement that was exactly the same as that of its “Cadbury Gems” or “Gems” products.
The Court was told that Mondelez India Foods also owns copyright registrations for the artistic works in respect of a figure known as “Gems Bond,” which has been used to promote “Gems” branded products, in addition to trademark registrations for “Cadbury’s Gems” and “Gems.”
The Single Judge Prathiba M Singh passed verdict stating that the entire colour scheme of the Neeraj Food Products product is identical to that of Cadbury’s label and packaging. The Court noted that Gems is one of the most well-known and well-recognized chocolate products in India and that almost everyone associates their childhood with it.
According to the court, the marks are likewise deceptively similar and confusingly identical. The court further noted that the mark might not even be fully visible because these products are sold not just in big packs but also in smaller pillow packs.
While concluding the Justice Singh added, “…the reliefs sought in respect of delivery up and for recall of the defendant’s products are not granted at this stage. However, if the plaintiff finds any infringing products in the market, they are free to seek execution of the decree, seeking delivery up, at that stage.”
