2015 (12) TMI 711 - HC - Indian Laws

Permanent injunction restraining infringement of copyright (in editorial comments/ headnotes to cases) and unfair competition and for damages etc. against the defendant - Held that - Perusal of the cases as submitted shows that the head notes of the defendant made are almost similar to that of the plaintiff. Thus, the plaintiff has been able to make out a strong prima facie case for grant of ad interim injunction. Hence, till the next date, the defendant is restrained from continuing with the infringement of plaintiff s copyright in its editorial comments/case Head-notes. They are directed to remove the existing infringing material from its website www.casansaar.com, which may amount to infringement of plaintiff s copyright as claimed.

Summary

Issues:
1. Exemption application allowed with exceptions.
2. Registration of plaint as a suit.
3. Issuance of summons to the defendant.
4. Application under Order XXXIX R.1 & 2 CPC for injunction.

Issue 1: Exemption Application
The court allowed the exemption application, subject to just exceptions, and disposed of the matter.

Issue 2: Registration of Plaint
The court directed the registration of the plaint as a suit and ordered the issuance of summons to the defendant upon payment of the process fee and submission of Regd. A.D. Covers within a week, returnable on a specified date.

Issue 3: Issuance of Summons
The plaintiff filed a suit seeking permanent injunction against copyright infringement and unfair competition by the defendant. The plaintiff, a leading publisher in the field of tax, corporate, and commercial laws, alleged that the defendant copied its editorial comments and headnotes in a large number of cases on its website. The plaintiff highlighted the effort and expense put into developing these materials, claiming copyright protection under the Copyright Act, 1957. The plaintiff identified specific cases where the defendant's headnotes were almost identical to the plaintiff's, establishing a strong prima facie case for an injunction. The court restrained the defendant from further infringement and directed the removal of infringing material from the defendant's website.

Issue 4: Application for Injunction
The plaintiff contended that the editorial comments and case headnotes were original literary works entitled to copyright protection. The defendant's website was found to have extensively copied these materials, constituting copyright infringement. Despite legal notices sent by the plaintiff, the defendant failed to comply, leading to the court granting an ad interim injunction in favor of the plaintiff. The court ordered the defendant to remove the infringing material from its website and comply with the injunction within a specified timeframe as per Order XXXIX Rule 3 CPC.

This detailed analysis covers the issues involved in the legal judgment comprehensively, addressing the exemption application, registration of the plaint, issuance of summons, and the application for injunction under Order XXXIX R.1 & 2 CPC.