GOETHE-INSTITUT E.V. vs ABHISHEK YADAV & ANR.

Judgment text excerpt

$~ * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI + CS(COMM) 541/2024 & I.A. 32184/2024 GOETHE-INSTITUT E.V. .....Plaintiff Through: Mr. C.M. Lall, Sr. Adv. with Mr. Karan Bajaj, Mr. Suman Jyoti Khaitan, Mr. Vikas Kumar, Mr. Vihaan Kumar, Advocates (M:9968636993) versus ABHISHEK YADAV & ANR. .....Defendants Through: Mr. Vikas Khera, Ms. Sneha Sethia, Mr. Yash Sharma, Advocates (M: 7834897828) CORAM: HON’BLE MS. JUSTICE MINI PUSHKARNA JUDGMENT % 06.05.2025 I.A. 32184/2024 (Application under Order XXXIX Rules 1 and 2 read with Section 151 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 for interim injunction) 1. By way of the present application, the plaintiff seeks injunction for restraining the defendants from using the impugned marks, i.e., MAX MUELLER/ MAX MUELLER INSTITUTE/ or any other mark which contains or is similar to the earlier used mark of the plaintiff, MAX MUELLER/MAX MUELLER BHAVAN, either as a trademark or part of Signature Not Verified Digitally Signed CS(COMM) 541/2024 Page 1 of 42 By:HARIOM Signing Date:07.05.2025 18:26:48 trademark, trade name or part of a trade name, corporate name, electronic mail, domain name or part of a domain name, or in any manner, which would amount to passing off. 2. The case, as set up by the plaintiff, is as follows: 2.1 Plaintiff is a society registered in Germany and is a well known cultural institute owned and operated by the Federal Republic of Germany. Plaintiff was founded by the Federal Republic of Germany in 1951 to spread awareness about Germany‟s cultural and societal diversity across the globe. Plaintiff has its presence in 98 countries with 158 Goethe Institutes. 2.2 Plaintiff commenced its operations in India in the year 1957 by opening its first institute in Kolkata by the name MAX MUELLER BHAVAN. The Goethe-Institut of the p