India’s Intellectual Property Appellate Board in the balance

A general reform of the Indian Tribunal System proposed by the Ministry for Finance endangers the continuation of the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB). Should this reform pass through, the competencies of IPAB will be taken over by the commercial and high courts of the country. Currently, IPAB hears appeals against decisions of the registrar for trade mark and geographical indication applications.

The main argument for this push to abolish India’s specialised IP Court is that it has not eased the resolution of IP cases as fast as was expected, at a cost which is considered excessive by the Ministry for Finance.

Associations of IP professionals have appealed against this decision, claiming that such a move may undermine India’s standing as an IP jurisdiction and risk lowering the standards related to IP protection in the country.

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