Ex Parte Injunction in High-Profile Trademark Infringement Matter
Obtained an urgent ex parte ad interim injunction from the Delhi High Court against a competitor's deceptively similar product brand — preventing market damage pending full trial.
Practice Areas Involved
The Challenge
A Delhi NCR consumer goods company discovered that a competitor had launched a product in the same category under a brand name and packaging design that was visually and phonetically deceptively similar to the client's registered trademark. The competitor had already achieved distribution in 8,000 retail outlets in Delhi NCR and had begun online marketplace listings. Each passing day was causing consumer confusion, dilution of brand equity, and lost sales. The client required the fastest possible court intervention — an ex parte ad interim injunction before the competitor could entrench further.
Our Approach
We filed a suit for permanent injunction and damages in the Delhi High Court's IP roster within 48 hours of instruction. The plaint was accompanied by an affidavit-in-support establishing all three elements of the ex parte injunction test: prima facie case (trademark registration, phonetic and visual similarity evidence with consumer surveys), balance of convenience (market damage to an established brand versus inconvenience to an infringing newcomer), and irreparable harm (ongoing daily sales loss, brand dilution that cannot be compensated in money alone).
We presented a professional consumer survey — commissioned urgently and conducted in 72 hours — showing that 63% of surveyed consumers confused the competing product with the client's product when shown packaging photographs. This evidence was central to establishing prima facie likelihood of confusion.
The Result
The Delhi High Court granted an ex parte ad interim injunction on the first hearing date, restraining the defendant from manufacturing, selling, or distributing the competing product under the infringing brand. The defendant's products were removed from retail shelves within 72 hours of service. Online marketplace listings were taken down within five days following notices to the platforms under the court order.
The defendant filed an application for vacation of the injunction which was dismissed after hearing both parties. The matter is now proceeding to trial on permanent injunction and damages.
Key Lessons
- ◆Speed of judicial intervention in trademark infringement directly correlates to the strength of the evidence package filed on day one — comprehensive injunction applications obtain faster relief.
- ◆Consumer confusion surveys, while requiring urgent commissioning, provide objective third-party evidence that is highly persuasive in IP injunction applications.
- ◆Ex parte injunctions require establishing irreparable harm with specificity — generalised brand dilution arguments must be supported with quantified market penetration data.
- ◆Platform take-down notices predicated on court orders are significantly more effective than standalone IP infringement notices to online marketplaces.
Facing a similar challenge?
Our Intellectual Property team has extensive experience with matters like this. Every consultation is with a senior partner.