Loreal S.A. vs Ashok Kumar and & Ors.
The Case is between LOREAL S.A. and Ashok Kumar, embodying a critical question of Law, i.e., Whether the plaintiff is entitled to a permanent injunction and other reliefs against the defendant(s) for infringing its registered trademark and copyright, engaging in passing off, and misleading consumers by impersonating the plaintiff’s employees.
The facts of the case were that L’Oréal, a globally renowned beauty and personal care brand, had filed a lawsuit against unknown individuals for trademark infringement, copyright violation, and fraudulent impersonation. The plaintiff, a French society operating in India through its subsidiary, L’Oréal India Pvt. Ltd., alleges that the defendants have unlawfully used its registered trademark and branding on a rogue website, www.lorealglobal.in, misleading the public into believing they are affiliated with the company. The fraudulent activities were discovered when Nicholas Healthcare Limited reported them in September 2021. The lawsuit also names domain registrar and telecom service providers as defendants, seeking an injunction and other legal remedies to prevent further misuse of its intellectual property and protect its brand reputation.
The High Court of Delhi has ruled in favour of L’Oréal in a trademark infringement and online fraud case, granting a summary judgment under Order XIII-A of the Civil Procedure Code, 1908. The Court found that the defendant had deliberately replicated L’Oréal’s official website, www.loreal.com, by creating www.lorealglobal.in, using identical logos and layout to mislead consumers. The defendant also used fraudulent email addresses impersonating L’Oréal employees to issue fake purchase orders, indicating malafide intent. In an earlier ex parte ad-interim injunction (September 28, 2021), the Court had restrained the defendant from using the infringing domain name and email addresses. As the defendant failed to appear in court or contest the claims, the Court ruled that there was no real prospect of defense, making a trial unnecessary. The Court directed the National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) to prevent any future domain registrations under “co.in” and “.in” extensions containing “L’Oréal”. Additionally, the defendant was ordered to pay ₹1,00,000 as costs to L’Oréal within eight weeks.
The case between L’Oréal S.A. and Ashok Kumar highlights the critical balance between intellectual property protection and legal enforcement in the digital age. The Delhi High Court’s ruling provides much-needed clarity on trademark infringement and online fraud, reinforcing the significance of safeguarding brand identity. This decision serves as a deterrent against fraudulent impersonation and a call for stringent regulatory measures to prevent misuse of registered trademarks.