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Dear Madam,

I read with interest the story called Stepping up the fight in the November issue of your magazine, which covered IP laws and their enforcement in India. I was indeed surprised to learn that India’s IP protection regime is considered by the US Embassy to be as inadequate as the IP protection regimes of countries like China, among 11 others. Unlike China, India has had a long and very illustrious history of IP protection and the assessment by the embassy is in my view absolutely incorrect.

The Indian Trademark Law dates back to the year 1940 and the Copyright Law to the year 1957. Patent protection has been available in India since as far back as 1911. In contrast China had no IP law at all until 1982.

While it is true that the trial of suits in India can take a long time, it is equally true that most IP litigation does not go on to full trial and is decided at the interlocutory stage. Either the parties settle at this time or the matters go on to full trial without the party which lost at the interlocutory stage taking an active interest in the litigation. It is for this reason that damages have never been an adequate remedy or deterrent in IP litigation in India. Recognizing this fact, the Supreme Court in two recent judgments has opined that all IP cases should be finally heard and tried within four months of the institution of the suit.

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