1938 (9) TMI 14 - HC - Companies Law

Summary

Issues Involved:
1. Whether the defendants' company name is calculated to deceive the public and divert business from the plaintiffs to the defendants.
2. Whether the delay in filing the suit and the absence of an interim injunction affect the case.
3. Whether the plaintiffs' company is known to the public by its shortened name 'Asiatic'.
4. Whether the addition of the word 'New' in the defendants' company name sufficiently differentiates it from the plaintiffs' company name.

Detailed Analysis:

1. Whether the defendants' company name is calculated to deceive the public and divert business from the plaintiffs to the defendants.
The main issue is whether the similarity in the names of the two companies is likely to deceive the public and cause confusion. The plaintiffs, Asiatic Government Security Life Assurance Co., Ltd., argue that the defendants' name, New Asiatic Life Insurance Co., Ltd., is a colorable imitation and likely to mislead the public. The court compared the names and found that the word 'New' in the defendants' name is a decisive difference. Additionally, the plaintiffs' name includes 'Government Security' and is registered in Mysore, while the defendants' name does not include these elements. The court emphasized that a high standard of affirmative proof is required to establish the plaintiff's case, and in this case, there was no evidence that the public was misled or confused.

2. Whether the delay in filing the suit and the absence of an interim injunction affect the case.
The suit was filed nearly four years after the alleged infringement, and no interim injunction was sought during this period. The court noted that the delay is deplorable but acknowledged that both parties had agreed that an interim injunction was not necessary and a speedy trial should be conducted. The delay allowed the court to observe the actual development of the businesses, which showed no significant confusion or deception. Therefore, the delay did not materially affect the decision.

3. Whether the plaintiffs' company is known to the public by its shortened name 'Asiatic'.
The plaintiffs claimed that their company was known to the public by the name 'Asiatic'. However, the court found no evidence to support this claim. The court pointed out that abbreviations in some books do not establish that the public referred to the plaintiffs' company as 'Asiatic'. No witnesses came forward to testify that they were misled, and no evidence showed that the public used the same term as insurance experts. Thus, the court was not satisfied that the plaintiffs' company was generally known as 'Asiatic'.

4. Whether the addition of the word 'New' in the defendants' company name sufficiently differentiates it from the plaintiffs' company name.
The court considered whether the addition of the word 'New' in the defendants' name sufficiently differentiated it from the plaintiffs' name. The court referred to previous cases, such as Hopton Wood Stone Firms Ltd. v. Gathing, where the addition of the word 'New' was deemed sufficient to avoid confusion. The court concluded that the word 'New' at the beginning of the defendants' name was a decisive difference, and combined with other differences, it was unlikely to mislead the public.

Conclusion:
The court held that the defendants' company's name was not calculated to deceive or cause confusion among the public. The plaintiffs failed to provide sufficient affirmative proof that the public was misled or that their company was known by the name 'Asiatic'. The addition of the word 'New' in the defendants' name was found to be a significant differentiator. Consequently, the suit was dismissed with costs.