The Delhi High Court has directed a drug company to pay compensation of Rs.50,000 to a homeopathic medicine maker whom it had sued for alleged trademark infringement.
While dismissing Himalaya Drug Company’s plea to restrain homeopathic medicine company SBL Limited from manufacturing homeopathic drug by the name LIV-T, Justice S. Muralidhar said there was no evidence to substantiate the complaint.
The court directed Himalaya Drug Company to pay compensation of Rs.50,000 to SBL Limited.
Muralidhar, in a recent order, said that the company had failed to produce evidence that LIV-T had created confusion in the minds of customers and also that the prefix “LIV” used by SBL Limited was a patent of the petitioner.
“On comparing the two trademarks taken as a whole it is not possible to hold that the use of trademark LIV-T by the defendant amounts to infringement of trademark,” said the court.
The petitioner alleged that SBL Limited dishonestly adopted the trademark LIV-T in relation to homeopathic preparations meant to cure liver disorders.
“Liv-52 and LIV-T are deceptively similar. Due to this they are having a good business and is creating a confusion in the minds of customers in the market,” said the petitioner.
But the court rejected the plea on the ground that “Liv” is not a property of the petitioner and that the suffix 52 has no similarity with T.
SBL’s LIV-T is a homeopathic liver tonic widely prescribed for treatment of liver diseases and stimulating the appetite.
Reacting to the verdict, chairman of SBL Limited B.K. Shrestha said: “There are many liver preparations available in the market with prefix ‘Liv’ but Himalaya targeted only SBL’s LIV-T.”
