Your Step-By-Step Guide To Intellectual Property Rights

Intellectual Property Rights
Real Estate » Your Step-By-Step Guide To Intellectual Property Rights

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India has improved its position in the Global Innovation Index greatly over the years. From 46 in 2021 to 35 ranks in 2022, this growth can be attributed to only one factor, intellectual property rights. Intellectual Property Rights allow people to protect any product or creation that has taken effort on the part of the creator. India has updated their rules and laws towards this very aim to include the following pointers.

What Is Intellectual Property?

Intellectual property refers to properties or creations that are made using a person’s artistic ability, intelligence or human reasoning. These properties can be literary, scientific, design, symbols etc in nature. To prevent unauthorised usage of these properties, the creator gets it legally protected so that no one can use it without consent. Anyone who has violated said IP rights could be charged with fines and also jail time.

Intellectual Property protection is also ideal for companies who wish to expand their business, particularly, on international grounds. There are, however, rules or criteria on the basis of which an Intellectual Property Right will be granted to people. These rules have been discussed below.

Intellectual Property Rights India

Before discussing the types of Intellectual property rights available in India, let us understand about the objectives and laws governing IP. There is a certain goal of intellectual property rights and forming laws governing them. These objectives are as follows:

  • The first objective is to create an awareness of intellectual property rights with the general public. The advantages and disadvantages of IP must be known by all.
  • Another important goal is to have a strong IP law framework in India that is comprehensive.
  • Businesses in India must be able to function in a fair and competitive way. This will in turn better the economy.
  • There are many commercial benefits as well to having intellectual property rights.
  • This is also a good way to strengthen the system in case of IP infringement.

There are several types of intellectual properties that are officially recognized in India. These properties have been discussed in detail below. Here, we have listed the laws that govern this intellectual property protection.

  • The Patents Act, 1970
  • The Patents Act Amendment, (2005, 2012-2021)
  • Copyright Rules, 1958
  • The Designs Act, 2000
  • The Trademarks Act, 1999
  • Information Technology (Certifying Authorities), 2000
  • The Trademarks Act Amendment, 1999
  • The International Copyright Order, 1999
  • The Geographical Indications Of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999

Types Of Intellectual Property Rights

Following are some of the major intellectual properties like patent copyright and trademark are in India. One must keep in mind that the following list is not exhaustive and there are more properties that come under intellectual property.

Patents:

The first intellectual property introduced in India was patents through the Indian Patent and Designs Act, 1911. Thereafter several amendments have been made to this act. Currently, the Patents (Amendments) Act, 2005 is referred to for patents. A patent is an umbrella term used to describe protection given to an invention. Some intellectual property rights examples for patents are business ideas, algorithms, computer programs etc. There are some guidelines that the said product has to meet in order to win the patent. They are:

The first intellectual property introduced in India was patents through the Indian Patent and Designs Act, 1911. Thereafter several amendments have been made to this act. Currently, the Patents (Amendments) Act, 2005 is referred to for patents. A patent is an umbrella term used to describe protection given to an invention. Some intellectual property rights examples for patents are business ideas, algorithms, computer programs etc. There are some guidelines that the said product has to meet in order to win the patent. They are:

  • The invention must be new and not published anywhere.
  • The said invention is also not something that a person with the correct skills can make.
  • The invention must be used in some form.

Patents are awarded for a period of twenty years and the information on it made public. The patent is used for commercial uses only by the owner.

Industrial Designs:

This intellectual property refers to the shape, colour, pattern, configuration, composition or a combination of these that has been applied to an article. An article, here, refers to a manufactured product or a part of the article. The goal of these designs is commercial use and to protect against illegal usage or piracy, it is protected under the intellectual property laws. Designs, in India, are covered under the Design Act, 2000.

Like with patents, designs allow the owner of the design the exclusive right to use it for a period of ten years. This period starts from the date of registration to the date on which the filling has been done. Upon expiry, the same design cannot be re-registered.

Copyrights:

Copyright is a term that many people know of in terms of music or photographs or films. It is protection awarded to protect an artist’s creations. This is a wide term and includes many items besides the ones mentioned above. For instance, drawings, sculptures, craftsmanship, sound recording etc also receive copyrights. By giving a person copyright to a product, means there is only one creation and other copies are infringements.

Copyrights are covered under the Copyright Act, 1957. The act also states imprisonment of 6 months to 2 years and a fine between INR 50,000 to INR 2,00,000 for copyright infringement.

Trademarks:

IPR protect the use of information and ideas that hold unique value to them. These are called trademarks. Trademarks can be brands, signatures, letters or numerals, names, devices or shapes. The trademark will enable the owner to conduct business fairly, have goodwill, and prevent fraud regarding illegal usage. Following getting a trademark, marketing also becomes easy.

In India, trademarks were initially covered under the Indian Trademark Act, 1940. This was then replaced with the Trademark and Merchandise Act, 1958 and 1999 soon. Currently, the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights or TRIPS covers trademarks.

Geographical Indications:

One of the more unique types of intellectual properties is geographic indications. GI for short, are awarded to protect specific products made in a certain geographical area. These products are either of a certain quality or have a reputation that is linked to the geographical area. In India, GIs are typically awarded to SMEs to build their reputation, encourage consumers to buy and also important to promote regional growth. The specific act that covers GI is the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration & Protection Act, 1999).

Trade Secrets:

Trade secrets generally refer to any sort of confidential information. Companies and organizations take out intellectual property rights on their confidential information to prevent their illegal sale for exploitation. The information under trade secrets could have commercial value, manufacturing process, research data, or technical information.

Intellectual property rights have undergone several changes to keep up with developments in the type of products that can be potentially covered by IPR. This has improved India’s position in the world regarding IPR. Presently, Indian IPR is designed to coincide with TRIPS or Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, a legal agreement between WTO members. At Lex Solutions, experts can guide and help provide IPR in a painless and quick manner. Head to Lex Solutions for any help with intellectual property.

According to estimates, 65% of people living in urban areas around the world are tenants. This is also true in India due to the sky-high prices of real estate in the major cities and the large population of migrant workers who live there. Nevertheless, living as a renter can be a peaceful arrangement, but occasionally there are situations where one can run into rental problems and other connected issues, such as receiving an unauthorized eviction notice or the erratic behaviour of the landlord.

Are you, however, a renter who is experiencing such problems or simply curious about what to do if you ever find yourself in a similar situation? In that case, allow us to help you through this blog, which will briefly discuss about the several protections against landowner harassment.

What does illegal eviction of tenants mean?

An illegal eviction, also known as an unlawful termination of tenancy, typically happens when a landowner forbids a tenant from entering a rental property or removes the tenant’s belongings from the property through the use of force, intimidation, or other methods (such as cutting off utilities or changing the locks). However, if the landowners evict you without taking the proper legal action, they are breaking the law.

How Do You Respond When Your Landlord Forcibly Evicts You?

Almost every state has rental control legislation pertaining to tenant protection, and each state has established specific circumstances for which the landlord may lawfully evict the renter. Additionally, a tenant has a legal right under the law to appear in court and defend himself against unlawful eviction, and some of those accessible remedies for tenants are discussed below:

Grounds for eviction

Non-payment of rent, breach of the lease, property damage, and illegal activity are the most typical grounds for evicting a renter. The tenant must therefore review the provisions of the State Rent Control Act to ascertain the grounds for eviction specified in the Act. In addition, if the tenant is being evicted for any reason other than those specified in the Act—which is considered wrongful eviction—they must seek the help of an eviction lawyer and the enforcement agencies to halt this.

Suit for injunction

A renter might be unable to leave a property when asked to do so for a number of reasons, such as having a medical emergency or having his elderly parents live with him. When this happens, the tenant has the option to file a case in the appropriate court to obtain an injunction that will prevent them from being evicted for any other grounds (other than those listed in the State’s Rent Act). Along with the assistance of housing rental lawyers, the renter should take this action, if they are violently evicted without providing them with adequate notice.

Rent Controller

In the event that the tenant receives a notice of eviction on pretences, they should go see the rent controller of the relevant jurisdiction and explain why they believe the notice of eviction is invalid. Additionally, following the tenant eviction laws, the court will summon the tenant, who will then be forced to submit his or her case and the arguments supporting the necessary evidence.

Notice of rent payment

If the landowner claims that he has not received the required rent and lists this as the reason for serving the notice of eviction, the tenant may legitimately ask him or her to send the information to his bank account so that he can conduct the transaction and deposit the outstanding rent. Moreover, after agreeing to it, the landowner must give the tenant the information within 10 days of the date they received the notice.

Also Read: Lex Solutions – Your One-Stop Destination For All Things Legal

Steps that you must follow to legally evict a tenant in India

Because eviction laws differ from state to state, the following are typical recommendations for evicting a renter. Nevertheless, you can contact the tenants lawyer of Lex Solutions if you need any assistance.

Serve the Tenant With a Termination Notice

The tenancy must be terminated before a landlord can evict a tenant for cause, and the landowner shall provide the tenant with the required notice before taking legal action to do so. Three different kinds of termination notices are generally available:

  • Pay Rent or Quit: The tenant is required to pay the rent within a predetermined period (often three to five days) or leave the rented property.
  • Cure or Quit: A breach of the rental agreement or lease must be remedied by the tenant within a set amount of time.
  • Unconditional Quit: Without a chance to correct the offense or pay the rent, the tenant must leave the property.

But to evict a tenant without good reason, the landlord must give the renter a 30- or 60-day notice to leave the premises.

File an Eviction Lawsuit

If the renter does not correct the issue or quit the property within the allotted time, the landowner must initiate an unlawful detainer case in small claims court. Following this, landlords have the right to evict tenants by serving a legal notice to tenants to vacate their premises.

Wait for the Tenant’s Answer

Within the time frame given on the summons, the tenant may “answer” the complaint. The renter may, however, use the response to refute the charges or present a defence. And, for instance, a tenant might claim that the eviction was carried out in retaliation or that the unpaid rent was used to pay for repairs the landlord refused to undertake.

Receive a Judgment for Possession

A default judgment is granted to the landowner if the tenant ignores the eviction notice India. Moreover, the landowner is entitled to take ownership of the property if the renter replies with an answer but the court rules in his or her favor.

Remove the Tenant

Despite having the right to reclaim the property, the landlord is unable to evict a renter without the help of a law enforcement official. Nevertheless, the tenant will be informed of the legal eviction and the number of days they have to leave once such an official receives the judgment and the cost. Moreover, the law enforcement authority may physically evict the tenant if they don’t leave the property in the allotted period.

Also Read: Introduction To The Indian Judicial System And Court Hierarchy

Summing Up

Now that you are aware of the characteristics of evictions and how to deal with them in a nation like India, you must use them as needed. Additionally, as a landowner, you must evict a problematic renter per the law. And, to ensure that you are acting legally, consult a local landlord-tenant law attorney in your area. For such assistance, a legal firm in Chandigarh, lexsolution can offer you a one-stop solution.

FAQs

  • Can a tenant seek an injunction against the landlord?

According to the state rental rules present in India, a tenant does not have the right to issue an injunction against the landlord. Moreover, injunction procedures are always discretionary, and a court of law cannot grant a perpetual injunction in favour of the plaintiff against the right owner if the plaintiff is only a trespasser.

  • Can police evict a tenant in India?

Even if the renters behave disrespectfully, the police cannot assist in reclaiming the property. However, the only court with the authority to order the eviction of a tenant is the court of the rent controller under whose jurisdiction the property is located. 

  • When a tenant can get the benefit of protection against eviction?

If the tenant can show that the landlord gave his written approval to the subtenant, he is entitled to protection from eviction. Additionally, it disallows any other consent, including implied or oral permission.