What is trademark infringement?

Trademark infringement is the unauthorised use, in the course of trade, of a mark identical or deceptively similar to a registered trademark, as defined under Section 29 of the Trade Marks Act, 1999. It typically involves the same or allied goods or services, where the use is likely to cause confusion among consumers about the source of the product.

What is the difference between infringement and passing off?

Infringement is the statutory remedy available to the owner of a registered trademark under Section 29 — easier to prove because the registration itself establishes the right. Passing off is the common-law remedy for unregistered marks, where you must first prove your reputation and goodwill before showing misrepresentation and damage. Registration is what turns the harder passing-off fight into a stronger infringement claim.

Can I act without registration?

You can, but only through a passing-off action, which is harder and slower because you must prove established goodwill before anything else. A registered trademark gives you the statutory infringement route with stronger, faster remedies. If your mark is unregistered, we can still help via passing off — but registering is the single biggest upgrade to your enforcement power.

What is a cease-and-desist notice?

A cease-and-desist is a formal letter demanding that the infringer stop using your mark, often within a stated deadline, and setting out the consequences of non-compliance. Drafted with specific demands, evidence, and credible follow-through, it resolves a large share of matters without litigation — which is why a notice 'with teeth' is usually the first serious step.

How does a marketplace takedown work?

If your trademark is registered, marketplaces like Amazon and Flipkart let you report infringing or counterfeit listings through their brand-protection and brand-registry programmes. Filed correctly with proof of your registration and the infringement, takedowns are often actioned within a couple of days, removing the listing far faster than a court could.

What damages can I claim?

In a civil infringement action you can seek an injunction to stop the use, and either damages for your loss or an account of the infringer's profits, plus delivery-up of the infringing goods for destruction. The court tailors the remedy to the harm, and an interim injunction can halt the infringement while the suit is decided.

Is criminal action possible?

Yes. The Trade Marks Act contains criminal provisions — Sections 103 and 104 — under which applying a false trademark or selling goods bearing one can carry imprisonment of up to three years plus a fine. Criminal action, often with police involvement, is a powerful route against deliberate counterfeiters operating at scale.

What if the infringer is in another state?

Infringement is rarely confined to one state, and the law accommodates this. Marketplace takedowns are nationwide regardless of where the seller sits, and a suit can usually be filed where you carry on business, not only where the infringer is located. We coordinate enforcement across states so distance does not shield the copycat.

What about someone using my brand as an ad keyword?

Bidding on your brand name as a search or marketplace advertising keyword can amount to infringement where it causes confusion or rides your goodwill. We assess the specific use, send a targeted notice, and pursue platform remedies — the appropriate response depends on how the keyword is used and whether the ad misleads consumers.

What are the remedies for domain squatting?

Where someone registers a domain using your trademark in bad faith, you can pursue recovery through domain dispute mechanisms — the UDRP for global domains and the INDRP for .in domains — alongside, or instead of, a court action. We assess the registration, file the complaint, and seek transfer or cancellation of the squatted domain.

I received an infringement notice — what now?

Do not ignore it. A non-response invites escalation, including a suit and a request for an ex-parte interim injunction. We review the notice and your own use history and filing dates, assess whether the claim is valid, and file a timely, substantive response — whether that is a robust rebuttal, a negotiated undertaking, or a coexistence proposal.

How long does an infringement suit take?

A full infringement suit can run for a considerable time, but the decisive moment is often early: a well-supported application for an interim injunction can stop the infringement within weeks. Because of this, and because many matters settle after a strong notice or takedown, the full trial timeline is frequently not where the outcome is actually determined.

Can matters settle with undertakings?

Yes, and many do. An infringer often agrees to a written undertaking to stop using the mark, deliver up or destroy infringing stock, and sometimes pay costs or damages — resolving the matter without a full trial. A binding undertaking, properly recorded, gives you enforceable protection while saving both sides the time and cost of litigation.

Should I preserve evidence before sending a notice?

Absolutely. Before alerting the infringer, capture dated screenshots, make test purchases, and where needed have the evidence notarised — because once you send a notice, listings and posts can vanish. Preserving credible, dated evidence first is what keeps your case strong if the matter escalates to a takedown or a suit.

Cease-and-desist to courtroom — the full enforcement ladder

Trademark Infringement — Someone Is Riding Your Brand. Here's How We Stop Them.

Trademark infringement is the unauthorised use in trade of a mark identical or deceptively similar to a registered trademark under Section 29 — remediable through injunctions, damages or account of profits, delivery-up, and in wilful cases criminal prosecution carrying imprisonment of up to three years.

Evidence preserved before the copycat reacts
Cease-and-desist drafted with real teeth
Marketplace, domain and social takedowns
Civil suit with interim-injunction push
Defence if you received an infringement notice

TRUSTED BY GROWING BRANDS

Copycats stopped for brands across India

S.29

Defines infringement

Identical or deceptively similar use in trade

3 yrs

Max imprisonment

Criminal counterfeiting under S.103-104

48 hrs

Typical takedown turnaround

Once a marketplace report is filed right

Unlocks statutory remedies

Unregistered marks rely on passing off

What counts as infringement — and how it's stopped

Trademark infringement is the unauthorised use, in the course of trade, of a mark identical or deceptively similar to a registered trademark, as defined under Section 29 of the Trade Marks Act, 1999 — remediable through injunctions, damages or account of profits, delivery-up of infringing goods, and in wilful cases criminal prosecution carrying imprisonment of up to three years. In practice it covers identical or near-identical use on the same or allied goods and services, where consumers are likely to be confused about who they are really buying from.

Registration is what changes everything. The owner of a registered mark sues for infringement under Section 29, where the registration itself proves the right — a far stronger and faster position than an unregistered owner, who is left with the harder common-law action of passing off and must first establish reputation and goodwill before anything else. The ® is not a formality; it is the difference between a statutory remedy and an uphill evidentiary fight.

Enforcement is a ladder, not a single leap, and the smart play is to climb it deliberately. It runs from preserving dated evidence, to a cease-and-desist with credible follow-through, to marketplace and platform takedowns, and finally to a suit with an interim-injunction push if needed. Not every battle is worth the same response — we map each matter to its real commercial impact, hitting hard where the harm is real and resolving the rest efficiently, so your enforcement budget buys outcomes rather than noise.

Trademark infringement support service for enforcement and takedowns

REAL INFRINGEMENT CASES

The situations that bring brands to us

Infringement takes many shapes — and one of them is being accused yourself. Here is how we handle each.

When

Copycat listing on Amazon/Flipkart

The issue

A seller is using your brand name on a marketplace listing

We do

Evidence preserved and a brand-registry takedown filed

When

Lookalike packaging in local markets

The issue

Physical goods in deceptively similar trade dress are circulating

We do

Test purchases, notice, and escalation as needed

When

Ex-distributor still using your mark

The issue

A former partner keeps trading on the brand after the split

We do

Cease-and-desist with teeth, then suit if ignored

When

Competitor bidding your brand as a keyword

The issue

Your name is being used as a paid search or marketplace keyword

We do

Use assessed, targeted notice and platform remedy

When

You received a cease-and-desist

The issue

A third party claims your use infringes their mark

We do

Notice reviewed and a substantive response filed in time

WHAT WE BRING TO BEAR

The enforcement arsenal

Stopping a copycat is rarely about one weapon. These are the four fronts we fight on, often at the same time.

Civil remedies

The court's toolkit: an injunction to stop the use, damages for your loss or an account of the infringer's profits, and delivery-up of the infringing goods for destruction. An interim injunction can freeze the infringement within weeks, long before the full suit is decided.

Criminal action

Against deliberate counterfeiters, Sections 103 and 104 carry imprisonment of up to three years plus a fine. Criminal action, often with police involvement and search-and-seizure, hits operators at scale far harder than a civil notice — a decisive route for organised counterfeiting.

Platform enforcement

Much infringement lives online, and so do the fastest remedies: marketplace brand-registry takedowns, UDRP and INDRP complaints to recover squatted domains, and social-handle recovery. Filed correctly, these strip the infringer's reach in days rather than the months a court takes.

The cease-and-desist

Where most matters actually end. A notice drafted with specific demands, dated evidence, clear deadlines, and credible consequences resolves a large share of infringements without litigation — provided it is written with the teeth to make the recipient believe the next step is real.

Start enforcement now

HOW WE ENFORCE

From evidence to injunction — the right rung at the right time

Six steps that climb the enforcement ladder deliberately, mapped to the commercial harm at each stage.

1
Assessment & evidence preservation
Step 1
We confirm the infringement under Section 29 and preserve dated evidence first — screenshots, test purchases, and notarisation where needed — before the infringer can take anything down.
2
Strategy mapped to harm
Step 2
We decide the response — notice, takedown, or suit — by the commercial damage at stake, so effort and cost match the threat rather than treating every copycat the same.
3
Cease-and-desist drafted and served
Step 3
We draft a cease-and-desist with specific demands, evidence and deadlines, and serve it — the step where a large share of matters resolve.
4
Platform enforcement in parallel
Step 4
We file marketplace takedowns, domain complaints, and social-handle recovery at the same time, so the infringement is shrinking while the legal process runs.
5
Negotiation & undertakings
Step 5
Where the infringer engages, we negotiate binding undertakings — to stop use, deliver up stock, and where appropriate pay costs — closing the matter without a trial.
6
Litigation with interim injunction
Step 6
If the infringer does not back down, we pursue a suit through the commercial courts, pushing early for an interim injunction to halt the infringement while the case proceeds.

WHAT WE NEED

Documents, by which side you're on

Your registration certificate
Evidence of infringement — listings, packaging
Invoices of test purchases
The infringer's details and reach

The infringement notice received
Your use history and first-use dates
Your filing and registration records
Defence evidence — prior use, distinctions

Evidence is the foundation of every infringement matter — dated, preserved, and where needed notarised. Whether you are enforcing your mark or answering a notice, the earlier we capture and organise the record, the stronger your position when it counts.

Clear answers on infringement vs passing off, acting without registration, cease-and-desist, marketplace takedowns, damages, criminal action, cross-state and keyword use, domains, and responding to a notice.

Fast answersExpert support

Trademark infringement is the unauthorised use, in the course of trade, of a mark identical or deceptively similar to a registered trademark, as defined under Section 29 of the Trade Marks Act, 1999. It typically involves the same or allied goods or services, where the use is likely to cause confusion among consumers about the source of the product.
Infringement is the statutory remedy available to the owner of a registered trademark under Section 29 — easier to prove because the registration itself establishes the right. Passing off is the common-law remedy for unregistered marks, where you must first prove your reputation and goodwill before showing misrepresentation and damage. Registration is what turns the harder passing-off fight into a stronger infringement claim.
You can, but only through a passing-off action, which is harder and slower because you must prove established goodwill before anything else. A registered trademark gives you the statutory infringement route with stronger, faster remedies. If your mark is unregistered, we can still help via passing off — but registering is the single biggest upgrade to your enforcement power.
A cease-and-desist is a formal letter demanding that the infringer stop using your mark, often within a stated deadline, and setting out the consequences of non-compliance. Drafted with specific demands, evidence, and credible follow-through, it resolves a large share of matters without litigation — which is why a notice 'with teeth' is usually the first serious step.
If your trademark is registered, marketplaces like Amazon and Flipkart let you report infringing or counterfeit listings through their brand-protection and brand-registry programmes. Filed correctly with proof of your registration and the infringement, takedowns are often actioned within a couple of days, removing the listing far faster than a court could.
In a civil infringement action you can seek an injunction to stop the use, and either damages for your loss or an account of the infringer's profits, plus delivery-up of the infringing goods for destruction. The court tailors the remedy to the harm, and an interim injunction can halt the infringement while the suit is decided.
Yes. The Trade Marks Act contains criminal provisions — Sections 103 and 104 — under which applying a false trademark or selling goods bearing one can carry imprisonment of up to three years plus a fine. Criminal action, often with police involvement, is a powerful route against deliberate counterfeiters operating at scale.
Infringement is rarely confined to one state, and the law accommodates this. Marketplace takedowns are nationwide regardless of where the seller sits, and a suit can usually be filed where you carry on business, not only where the infringer is located. We coordinate enforcement across states so distance does not shield the copycat.
Bidding on your brand name as a search or marketplace advertising keyword can amount to infringement where it causes confusion or rides your goodwill. We assess the specific use, send a targeted notice, and pursue platform remedies — the appropriate response depends on how the keyword is used and whether the ad misleads consumers.
Where someone registers a domain using your trademark in bad faith, you can pursue recovery through domain dispute mechanisms — the UDRP for global domains and the INDRP for .in domains — alongside, or instead of, a court action. We assess the registration, file the complaint, and seek transfer or cancellation of the squatted domain.
Do not ignore it. A non-response invites escalation, including a suit and a request for an ex-parte interim injunction. We review the notice and your own use history and filing dates, assess whether the claim is valid, and file a timely, substantive response — whether that is a robust rebuttal, a negotiated undertaking, or a coexistence proposal.
A full infringement suit can run for a considerable time, but the decisive moment is often early: a well-supported application for an interim injunction can stop the infringement within weeks. Because of this, and because many matters settle after a strong notice or takedown, the full trial timeline is frequently not where the outcome is actually determined.
Yes, and many do. An infringer often agrees to a written undertaking to stop using the mark, deliver up or destroy infringing stock, and sometimes pay costs or damages — resolving the matter without a full trial. A binding undertaking, properly recorded, gives you enforceable protection while saving both sides the time and cost of litigation.
Absolutely. Before alerting the infringer, capture dated screenshots, make test purchases, and where needed have the evidence notarised — because once you send a notice, listings and posts can vanish. Preserving credible, dated evidence first is what keeps your case strong if the matter escalates to a takedown or a suit.

RELATED SERVICES

Protect and enforce your brand end to end

Trademark

Licenses

Compliance

Every day a copycat trades on your name, your brand pays for it. End it.

Evidence, cease-and-desist, takedowns, and suit — the full enforcement ladder, climbed at the right pace for your case. Received a notice instead? We respond, too.

Stop the infringement now Chat on WhatsApp

Notice · takedown · suit · defence — the whole ladder

Trademark Infringement — Someone Is Riding Your Brand. Here's How We Stop Them.

Stop the infringement

Copycats stopped for brands across India

Defines infringement

Max imprisonment

Typical takedown turnaround

Unlocks statutory remedies

What counts as infringement — and how it's stopped

The situations that bring brands to us

The enforcement arsenal

Civil remedies

Criminal action

Platform enforcement

The cease-and-desist

From evidence to injunction — the right rung at the right time

Assessment & evidence preservation

Strategy mapped to harm

Cease-and-desist drafted and served

Platform enforcement in parallel

Negotiation & undertakings

Litigation with interim injunction

Documents, by which side you're on

The four ways enforcement goes wrong

Screenshots without dates or notarisation

A notice sent from a template

Suing before takedowns

Ignoring a received notice

Trademark Infringement FAQs

01What is trademark infringement?

02What is the difference between infringement and passing off?

03Can I act without registration?

04What is a cease-and-desist notice?

05How does a marketplace takedown work?

06What damages can I claim?

07Is criminal action possible?

08What if the infringer is in another state?

09What about someone using my brand as an ad keyword?

10What are the remedies for domain squatting?

11I received an infringement notice — what now?

12How long does an infringement suit take?

13Can matters settle with undertakings?

14Should I preserve evidence before sending a notice?

Protect and enforce your brand end to end

Trademark

Licenses

Compliance

Every day a copycat trades on your name, your brand pays for it. End it.

Documents, by which side you're on

Trademark Infringement FAQs

01What is trademark infringement?

02What is the difference between infringement and passing off?

03Can I act without registration?

04What is a cease-and-desist notice?

05How does a marketplace takedown work?

06What damages can I claim?

07Is criminal action possible?

08What if the infringer is in another state?

09What about someone using my brand as an ad keyword?

10What are the remedies for domain squatting?

11I received an infringement notice — what now?

12How long does an infringement suit take?

13Can matters settle with undertakings?

14Should I preserve evidence before sending a notice?