Delhi HC Allows Dabur To Clear 9,020 Cool King Tael Cartons
Delhi HC allows Dabur to sell 9,020 Cool King Thanda Tael cartons by September 30 amid its packaging dispute with Emami.
SociapaHQ
The Delhi High Court has allowed Dabur India to sell its existing stock of 9,020 cartons of Cool King Thanda Tael by September 30, allowing the company to clear the inventory in a packaging dispute with Emami.
Dabur had been accused of trademark infringement, passing off and unfair trade practices by Emami, which sells Navratna Ayurvedic Oil, saying that the trade dress of Cool King was deceptively similar to that of Navratna.
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Court Retains Packaging Injunction:
The court had earlier restrained Dabur from selling Cool King in the disputed packaging after finding similarities in the overall appearance, layout and colour scheme of the products which may mislead consumers.
A division bench upheld the restraint on May 22. Dabur later asked for permission to sell inventory produced before the injunction.
A single judge approved the sale June 19, but only with conditions, including the disclosure of sales and the recall of unsold stock after Sept. 30. Emami challenged the order and submitted that the injunction passed by the division bench cannot be modified by a single judge.
The division bench agreed with Emami’s legal argument that any relaxation of an injunction upheld on appeal could only be considered by the division bench or a higher court.
However, Emami later withdrew its no-objection to Dabur selling the existing stock subject to the safeguards already imposed.
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Dabur To Withdraw Online Listings:
In such a case, Dabur will have to take off Cool King from e-commerce platforms and remove the listings and images of the product from platforms like Amazon and BigBasket.
The only place to sell what is left is in the stores run by wholesalers and retailers.
Products in inventory after September 30 must be recalled. The court also clarified that in case Dabur is not able to complete the recall and has to use a packaging different from that of Emami, then it cannot continue to sell the product in the disputed trade dress.
The underlying injunction against Dabur selling Cool King in a deceptively similar trade dress to Navratna is still in place.
