BUSINESS LAW

Cracking IPR Crimes – Police Training Venue:Tamil Nadu Police Academy, Vandalur, Chennai. The training was inaugurated and presided by: S. Santhi, Superintendent of Police, Tamil Nadu Police Academy and by Thiru. N. Baskaran, Inspector General, Tamil Nadu Police Academy. Number of Officers as Attendees:45 Police Officers of the ranks of Deputy Superintendents of Police, Inspectors as well as Sub- Inspectors from across various jurisdictions in the state of Tamil Nadu. Course Curriculum: Day 1 of the training entailed academic topics as mentioned below: Provisions of relevant statutory provisions namely Trademarks Act 1999, Copyright Act 1957, Information Technology Act 2000, Indian Penal Code 1860, The Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 and Evidence Act 1872.   The following sections were dealt with indepth: i.The Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 – s. 93, s.94, s.156. ii.Trademarks Act 1999 – s.134, s.135, s.115, s.101 – s.109. Procedure for carrying out raid – roles and responsibilities of Police. Important concepts under the Copyright Act 1957: Copyright, Counterfeits & the Law Whether copyright is a cognizable/ bailable offence? Whether it is mandatory to have Copyright Registration Certificate for enforcement under the Act? Relevant notifications, case laws and other legal principles dealing with both Civil and Criminal enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights. Counterfeiting and Piracy in the Digital World – Challenges and Solutions, Understanding Social and Economic Impacts of Counterfeiting and Piracy. Course Curriculum: Day 2 of the training entailed Brand Identification Training on behalf of the below mentioned brands. The participating right-holdersincluded Nike, Apple, Beats, Coty, Procter & Gamble, Burberry, Limited Brands, Honda, LVMH watches (Tag Heuer, Hublot & Zenith), Skullcandy, Monster Energy, Vans, ITC, Chrome Hearts, AudemarsPiguet and WD-40. Outcome: The Police Officers participated enthusiastically and shared constructive feedback on the training by highlighting the significance of sharing best practices and hands-on experience in their anti-counterfeiting and anti-piracy drives.

Drafting a Complete Patent Application (workout in groups) and Group Discussion on 13th & 14th September, 2018 India is riding fast towards development on its technological progression.   A stringent IPR protection and robust IPR enforcement mechanism seems indispensable to grow as an economy.  IPR laws have lately gained significance in the Indian legal system and are also responsible for augmenting the economy.  The government is waking up to intrinsic crimes against intellectual property and acknowledging their status at par to other offences. The course was focussed on giving insights about all the  IP protections available and their overlaps, and their linkages with allied statutes.  The knowledge was imparted with the intention to provide awareness to participants about the importance of Drafting the Complete Specification and the bad practices, the impact of important words/ phrases customarily used in Patent Drafting. The training was attended by Around 60 target persons, mainly belonging to IPR bodies (PIC’s), University IPR Cells, TISC officials, KIRAN IPR scientists (WOS C), R&D labs, IP professionals, industries etc. The workshop was organised pursuant to the fulfilment of the National IPR Policy’s objectives. This workshop was targeted to enable participants to critically identify, define and assess the general structure of a patent specification; acquire basic skills to identify an invention. Evaluate and apply different patent drafting techniques, and Draft claims in order to differentiate the concerned application from prior. The technical background participants, holding PhD. in their respective streams actively took interest in the  6 hours hands-on workshop and training to draft the Complete Specification and sincerely became part of the question-answer session by putting up queries about Drafting techniques and the methodology of writing Claims and other aspects related to a Patent Application. The sessions were very interactive with highly qualified people, who are experts in different technologies eagerly tried to clarify their doubts about the Legal aspect of the technical drafts and about the concepts of techno legal nature of the Patent Application. The group exercise followed the presentation, and the participants thoroughly brainstormed amongst each other in their groups to write the correct specification. They shared their feedback and felt well equipped to draft the Specification with Claims after the workshop.  The workshop was considered effective also in discussing Patent law and procedural aspects like First Examination report, Opposition, Revocation etc.

Ghaziabad Police on 28th August, 2018 India is riding fast towards development on its technological progression. A stringent IPR protection and its robust enforcement mechanism seems indispensable to grow as an economy. IPR laws have lately gained significance in the Indian legal system and are also responsible for augmenting the economy. The government is waking up to intrinsic crimes against intellectual property and acknowledging their status at par to other offences. The Government of India through its Home Affairs Ministry (Police-I Division, Police Training Section) issued a Notification vide F.No.23011/14/2017-PT dated 10th October 2017 introducing regular courses on enforcement of IPR for Police Officials. A course on “Investigation of Infringement of IPR” was organised by Central Detective Training Institute, Ghaziabad, on 28th August 2108, where United IPR was invited to expound and delineate upon IPR laws in India. The course was focussed on giving insights about all the IP protections available and their overlaps, and their linkages with allied statutes. The knowledge was imparted with the intention to make officers able to differentiate between various IP protections and to give a wide perspective while enforcing the rights. The full-day training was divided into four interactive sessions and it dealt with not only the Trademarks & Copyright laws but also covered other aspects of Intellectual Property Rights including the Designs, Patents, Geographical Indications, Traditional Knowledge and Plant Varieties. The officers were also trained on how to distinguish between a genuine and counterfeit product by providing them with physical specimens and offering a first-hand experience of different products of the participating right-holders, which included COTY Brands, POLO RALPH LAUREN, MONSTER ENERGY, DITA, VANS and CHROME HEARTZ. Enforcement mechanism pertaining to all the IPR laws were clarified and the role of police in IP protection was explained in detail during the interactive session. The training was attended by 25 police officers, including Sub Inspector to D.S.P Rank officers, from all over India. The inaugural session was presided over by the Assistant Commissioner of Police, who propounded upon the on-ground difficulties faced by police officers upon dealing with IPR infringement cases and also shared his experiences. He also delved upon how this training is relevant in the present scenario for the police. The police officials actively took interest in the whole day training and sincerely became part of the question-answer session by putting up queries about IPR law enforcement. They shared their feedback and felt well equipped to handle various IPR infringement cases after the training. The training was considered effective also in addressing economic & social implications of infringement of IP laws, such as child labour, tax evasion, terror financing, etc.

Customs play a crucial role in stopping fake goods from reaching the Indian market, but at the start of this mandate on IPR enforcement a decade ago in 2007, the whole scenario appeared in a bleak state, as it is with every new reform. We have come a long way since then and to this extent where IPR enforcement has become an integral part of the customs’ curriculum & one of the top most priorities. Custom officers, who otherwise are vested with the role of revenue collection and to facilitate ease of doing business, have an onerous responsibility of balancing out the interests by keeping an effective control over the supply chain, targeting the risks through the very efficient Risk Management System that we have in place today, to ensure the safety and security of India and its consumers and to protect the integrity of Indian markets against counterfeits, fraud, illicit trade and spurious goods. The right- holders are experiencing a staggering growth in the influx of counterfeits through the Indian territorial borders which have prompted the need for conducting terminal training on detection and assessment of counterfeit/infringing goods. Objective The training was presided over by the Hon’ble Commissioner of Customs Mr. Rajan Chaudhary and attended by approximately 100 officers across the hierarchy including the Deputy Commissioners, Assistant  Commissioners,  Appraisers,  Superintendents,  Examiners,  Inspectors and other officers responsible for the physical examination of the consignment. The training was not only deliberated to upon to discuss the legal procedure and product identification of various brands, but also to pave way for the very constructive and fruitful cooperation that Indian customs have offered since the inception of IPR Rules. Participants & Attendees Amongst the right-holders, there were popular brands like Apple, Nike, L’Oreal, Procter & Gamble, ghd (Good Hair Day), L Brands (Victoria’s Secret, La Senza, Pink, Henri Bendel and Bath & Body Works), Monster Energy, LVMH Watches Brands (Tag Heuer, Hublot & Zenith), Audemars Piguet, Burberry, Polo Ralph Lauren, WD-40 and Nivea. In a step closer towards aligning the industrial resources with that of the Indian Customs, the right- holders endeavor to build the capacity of Indian Customs and strengthen the economy by fighting illegal imports and counterfeits.  Due to its strategic location, Chennai is critical for the transit of goods and the right-holders are positive that this training would lead to higher frequency of interdictions of infringing goods.

IPR Training with Nhava Sheva Customs (Mumbai Zone II) on August 1, 2018 In India, the Custom authorities have played and continue to play a crucial role in anti-counterfeiting and enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights. The port of Nhava Sheva which comes under Mumbai Customs– Zone 2, is the largest container port in India and accounts for approximately 40 percent of the nation’s overall containerized oceanic trade. In the recent years, Nhava Sheva has witnessed an increased load of imported shipments and consequent increase in the number of seizures of counterfeit goods triggered by the various intelligence agencies within the Customs formations – particularly by the Special Intelligence and Investigation Branch (SIIB), Central Intelligence Unit (CIU), Marine & Preventive (M&P) as well as the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI). United IPR organized a training session with Nhava Sheva Customs aimed at recognition to the Nhava Sheva Custom Officials for their relentless support in enforcement of IP Rights and to equip them with enhanced key tools which are pivotal to curbing the influx of counterfeits into the Indian territory, by sharing specific inputs and intelligence on identification of products and of suspicious consignments. The training was held at The Regenza by Tunga, Mumbai on 1st August 2018 and was attended by approximately 45 officers from various field formations including the SIIB, Import & Export Docks, Audit Commissioneate, CIU, Chief Commissioner’s Office, etc. The participating right-holders included L’Oreal, Coty, Ray-Ban, P&G, Canon, Polo Ralph Lauren, Limited Brands, Burberry, Bvlgari, Lacoste, Stihl, VF Corporation (Lee & Wrangler), Crocs, LVMH Watches Brands (Tag Heuer, Zenith & Hublot) and Monster Energy. Customs officials attended the training enthusiastically participated and shared constructive feedback on the various guidelines and mechanisms shared by the right-holders. The right-holders as also the Custom Officials acknowledge that this is a prime step and an ideal platform for interaction between the public and private players to share their experiences, exchange best practices and better inter-agency coordination with respect to enforcement of IPRs.

IPR Training with Kolkata Customs, on 11th July, 2018 India has become one of the most revered destinations for investors with an ever-increasing market escalated by persistent demand for consumer goods. However, the issue of counterfeiting remains a common concern to all the right-holders, as its impact cuts across various sectors affecting the revenue, health and employment and it continues to be a menace to the society costing billions in revenue to the nation. Kolkata, being the biggest and most crucial entry point in East India, is responsible for feeding the entire North East region and has been a port of concern for the right holders. To address the aforesaid, United IPR organized training for Kolkata Customs on 11th July 2018, which was presided over by the Learned Deputy Commissioner of Customs Mr. L. Prabhunanda Singh and attended by approximately 45 Custom Officials which included Appraisers, Superintendents, Examiners and Inspectors across various field formations within the Kolkata Customs. The learned Deputy Commissioner emphasized on the importance of the initiative taken by the right-holders to enhance the capacity of the customs officers in lessening the penetration of fakes through the Indian borders. From the industry, the participating right-holders included Coty, Procter & Gamble, Ray-Ban, Burberry, Lacoste and Gant. All the participating officers shared a constructive written feedback upon the conclusion of the training. In a step closer towards aligning the industrial resources with that of the Indian Customs, the right-holders aim to build the capacity of Indian Customs. Due to its strategic location, Kolkata is critical for the transit of goods and the right-holders anticipate that the training would lead to higher frequency of prohibition of infringing goods.