Express Publications moves Supreme Court in trademark dispute
- The High Court restricted the use of 'The New Indian Express' trademark for events outside five southern states.
- Supreme Court Justices Pardiwala and Manmohan indicated they are unlikely to interfere with the ruling.
- The dispute stems from a 1991 disagreement between Vivek Goenka and Manojkumar Sonthalia.
- The case has been adjourned until after the Diwali break for the submission of additional documents.
Express Publications (Madurai) has filed a petition in the Supreme Court to challenge a Bombay High Court judgment that restricted its use of 'The New Indian Express' trademark for promotional events outside of five southern states and specific Union Territories. On Monday, a Supreme Court bench consisting of Justices JB Pardiwala and Manmohan indicated they were unlikely to interfere with the High Court's ruling. The Supreme Court adjourned the case until after the Diwali break to allow Senior Advocates for The New Indian Express to submit additional documents.
Indian stock markets rose on Monday, with Reliance Industries shares jumping 6% following a better-than-expected September-quarter profit. Bank of Baroda shares also experienced a rise on Monday. Brent crude oil prices fell to $110 per barrel on Monday from $118 on the previous Friday, amid ongoing talks regarding the Iran war.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments in a case involving the Catholic Church and Colorado's taxpayer-funded universal pre-K program. This Colorado universal pre-K program provides a $6,300 annual benefit for each enrolled child, with funding derived from a tobacco tax.
Legal representation in the trademark dispute
Darius Khambata represents The Indian Express in the same Supreme Court proceedings.
Bombay High Court upholds territorial restrictions
Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande ruled that the publisher's rights are limited to specific territories. They stated these legal rights do not include independent promotional activities.
The court based its decision on a June 2015 order from the Intellectual Property Appellate Board.
The court stated that interim findings do not constitute res judicata.
Litigation triggered by 'Mumbai Dialogues' event
The current litigation began after The New Indian Express hosted an event called 'Mumbai Dialogues' in September 2024, which the Indian Express group alleged violated territorial settlement terms.
In a separate matter, a legal issue concerns whether religious schools may refuse to admit children of gay and trans parents, which conflicts with a Colorado state law prohibiting discrimination.
Golka of the Denver Archdiocese wrote in the Denver Post that the Colorado pre-K program has caused a 20% decline in Catholic school enrollment across the archdiocese and the closure of two preschools.
Historical origins of the newspaper ownership dispute
The legal dispute originated from a 1991 disagreement between Vivek Goenka and Manojkumar Sonthalia following the death of newspaper owner Ramnath Goenka.
This settlement restricted the Madurai-based publisher to using 'The New Indian Express' for a daily newspaper in five southern states and specific Union Territories.
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