Intellectual Property Law

The Supreme Court dismissed Ilaiyaraaja's plea in the 'En Iniya Pon Nilave' dispute, leaving intact a ruling that a composer's copyright covers the music, not the sound recording or lyrics.

In the FieldMarshal trademark dispute Delhi HC ruling, the Delhi High Court barred both rival claimants from using the “FieldMarshal” mark on pumps, effectively rendering the trademark unusable after a 50-year legal battle.

In a landmark move, the Supreme Court of India refused to block Natco Pharma from producing a low-cost version of Roche’s SMA drug, Evrysdi, marking a powerful stand for affordable healthcare. The Roche-Natco SMA drug patent dispute underscores India’s constitutional commitment to prioritize life over profit, reaffirming its legacy as the world’s pharmacy.

India’s proposed Trade Secrets Bill aims to safeguard confidential business information — a long-missing layer of protection for startups, innovators, and investors. By defining what qualifies as a trade secret and setting penalties for misuse, the law could reshape how companies secure their know-how and gain investor confidence in India’s growing innovation ecosystem.

The ANI-YouTuber dispute highlights India's critical digital media juncture. It exposes ambiguous fair dealing laws (Section 52), YouTube's dominant, American-rooted platform policies, and the weaponization of copyright for aggressive revenue generation. This threatens independent journalism, exemplified by Mohak Mangal's case. The judiciary, legislature, and platforms must act to safeguard media freedom and ensure fair dealing for transformative content.

SC clarifies overlap between copyright and design law, protecting original artistic works despite commercial application.