TL;DR: Trademark infringement happens when someone uses your registered mark, or a deceptively similar one, on the same or similar goods or services in a way likely to confuse customers. It is defined in Section 29 of the Trade Marks Act, 1999. If it happens to you, you have real teeth: civil remedies under Section 135 (injunctions to stop the use, plus damages or account of profits), and, for deliberate counterfeiting, criminal action too. The practical enforcement path usually runs: gather evidence, send a cease-and-desist notice, and if that is ignored, go to court for an injunction. Only registered trademarks can sue for infringement, unregistered marks rely on passing off instead.
Quick overview: This guide explains, in plain terms, what legally counts as trademark infringement in India under Section 29, the civil and criminal remedies available to you, and a practical step-by-step roadmap for enforcing your rights, from documenting the infringement and sending a cease-and-desist notice to going to court. It also covers the difference between infringing a registered mark and passing off an unregistered one, and what to do if you are on the receiving end of an infringement notice.
You have built a brand. You have registered it, put it on your products, your website, your packaging. And then one day you spot it, someone else using your name, or something uncomfortably close to it, on their own products. Your first reaction is a mix of anger and worry: can they do that? What can I actually do about it?
This guide answers both questions. It explains what the law treats as infringement, what you can do to stop it, and the practical order in which to do it. It is written mainly for the brand owner who has been copied and wants to enforce, though if you are on the other side, worried you might be the one infringing, the same explanation tells you where you stand.
What Counts as Trademark Infringement?
At its simplest, trademark infringement is someone using your registered trademark, or a mark deceptively similar to it, without your permission, in a way that is likely to confuse customers about where the goods or services come from. This is set out in Section 29 of the Trade Marks Act, 1999.
Break that down into the pieces that actually matter, because all of them usually need to be present.
It has to be your registered mark, or something confusingly close to it. Infringement is not limited to an exact copy. If someone uses a mark so similar to yours that an ordinary customer might mistake one for the other, in the look of it, the sound of it, or the idea it conveys, that can be infringement. A competitor does not escape by changing one letter or tweaking a logo slightly if the overall impression still causes confusion.
It has to be on the same or similar goods or services. Trademark protection is tied to what you actually registered for. Someone using a similar name in a completely unrelated field may not be infringing, because customers are unlikely to be confused. The closer their goods or services are to yours, the stronger your case.
It has to be likely to cause confusion. This is the heart of it. The law is protecting customers from being misled about who they are buying from, and protecting you from having your reputation traded on. Where the use is identical, mark and goods both, confusion is essentially presumed. Where it is merely similar, the question becomes whether ordinary customers would likely be confused.
Section 29 goes further than the basic case, too. It also catches things like using your mark in a trade name, using it in advertising in a way that takes unfair advantage of or harms your brand, and, for marks with a strong reputation, using them even on dissimilar goods where that use damages or rides on the brand’s standing. The common thread is unfair use of the identity you built.
One crucial point up front: only a registered trademark can bring an infringement action under Section 29. If your mark is unregistered, or still just pending, you cannot sue for infringement, you have to rely on the common-law action of passing off instead, which protects the goodwill you have built through use but is harder to prove. This is one of the strongest practical reasons to register in the first place.
Your Remedies: What You Can Actually Get
If someone is infringing your registered mark, the law gives you a genuinely powerful toolkit, on two tracks.
Civil Remedies (Section 135)
This is the main route for most brand owners, and Section 135 sets out what a court can give you.
Injunctions, the most important remedy of all. An injunction is a court order telling the infringer to stop. It can be permanent (a final order after the case) or, crucially, temporary/interim, an order made early in the case to stop the infringing use straight away, before the full trial. In urgent cases, a court can even grant an immediate order without first hearing the other side (an ex parte injunction). For most brand owners, stopping the infringement quickly matters more than anything else, and the interim injunction is how that happens, often within weeks.
Damages or account of profits. You can recover compensation, either damages for the loss you suffered, or an account of the profits the infringer made from misusing your mark (you generally choose one, not both). Indian courts have shown they will award substantial sums in serious cases.
Delivery up and destruction. The court can order the infringing goods, labels, and packaging to be handed over and destroyed, so they never reach the market.
In serious cases, courts can also grant search-and-seizure style orders (often called Anton Piller orders) allowing infringing material to be secured before it disappears, and John Doe orders aimed at unknown infringers, useful against anonymous online sellers and counterfeiters.
Criminal Remedies
Trademark infringement, particularly deliberate counterfeiting, is also a criminal offence in India. Under the Trade Marks Act, falsifying a trademark or selling goods bearing a false mark can lead to imprisonment and fines, with heavier penalties for repeat offenders. Because these offences can be cognizable, they can enable police action, raids and seizure of counterfeit stock, which is a powerful deterrent against organised counterfeiting in particular. Civil and criminal proceedings can run at the same time, and for large-scale fakes, the criminal route can move faster to physically stop the operation.
The Practical Enforcement Roadmap
Knowing your remedies is one thing; using them in the right order is what actually protects your brand efficiently. Here is the practical sequence most enforcement follows.
Step one: document everything. Before you do anything else, build your evidence. Take dated screenshots of the infringing website, listings, or social media. Buy a sample of the infringing product if you can, and keep the invoice and packaging. Record where and how the mark is being used. This evidence is the foundation of everything that follows, and it is far easier to gather now than after the infringer realises they have been noticed and cleans up.
Step two: send a cease-and-desist notice. In most cases, the first formal move is a cease-and-desist notice, a legal letter telling the infringer to stop, setting out your registration, the infringement, and a deadline to comply. It is not legally mandatory, but it is standard practice for good reasons: it often resolves the matter without going to court, it creates a clear paper trail, and it puts the infringer formally on notice, which helps you later if they carry on regardless. A well-drafted notice resolves a large share of disputes on its own. Our cease-and-desist service handles exactly this, and our guide on the IP cease-and-desist notice explains how it works.
There is a strategic nuance worth knowing: in some serious cases, particularly large-scale counterfeiting where you fear evidence will be destroyed, jumping straight to court for a surprise injunction can be smarter than tipping off the infringer with a notice first. This is a judgment call worth taking advice on, which is why our guide on handling IP theft without burning money on litigation is useful reading before you act.
Step three: go to court if needed. If the notice is ignored or refused, the next step is a civil suit for infringement, usually filed together with an application for an interim injunction so you can stop the infringing use quickly rather than waiting years for a final judgment. In appropriate cases, you can also pursue the criminal route in parallel. A full civil case can take a few years to conclude, but the interim injunction is what gives you fast, practical relief in the meantime, and often, once an interim order is granted, the dispute settles.
For online infringement, there is an extra layer: you can also use the takedown mechanisms of e-commerce platforms, social media sites, and domain registrars, most of which will act on a proper notice with proof of your rights. Our guide on domain name and cybersquatting disputes covers the online and domain side, and our piece on what to do when someone copies your brand is a practical companion to this one.
Infringement vs Passing Off: The Registered/Unregistered Divide
It is worth being clear on this, because it decides which door you can walk through.
Infringement is the statutory remedy for a registered trademark, under Section 29. It is generally easier to prove, because your registration itself is strong evidence of your right, you largely need to show the infringing use and the likelihood of confusion.
Passing off is the common-law remedy for an unregistered mark. You can still protect a name you have built up through use, but you have to prove more: that you have genuine goodwill and reputation in the mark, that the other party misrepresented their goods as yours, and that you suffered (or are likely to suffer) damage. It is a real remedy, and it works, but it is a heavier lift than infringement.
The takeaway is simple: registration turns brand protection from a harder, evidence-heavy passing-off fight into a cleaner statutory infringement claim. If you have not registered your mark yet, this is one of the clearest reasons to, and our trademark registration in India service is where to start.
If You Receive an Infringement Notice
A quick word for the other side, because readers land here from both directions. If you have received a cease-and-desist or infringement notice, do not panic, and do not ignore it. Ignoring it is the worst option, because continuing to use the mark after being formally warned counts heavily against you if the matter reaches court. Read it carefully, take advice on whether the claim is actually sound (not every notice is well-founded, and you may have genuine defences such as honest prior use or that there is no real likelihood of confusion), and respond in a considered way. Sometimes the right answer is to stop; sometimes it is to push back; sometimes a negotiated coexistence or licensing arrangement is cheaper and faster than a fight. The key is to engage properly rather than react.
Conclusion
If someone copies your brand in India, you are far from powerless, provided you registered it. Three things are worth carrying away. First, infringement under Section 29 is about someone using your registered mark, or a confusingly similar one, on related goods in a way likely to mislead customers, and registration is what unlocks this remedy. Second, your toolkit is strong: injunctions to stop the use fast, damages or an account of profits, delivery up, and criminal action against deliberate counterfeiting. Third, enforce in the right order, document the infringement, send a cease-and-desist notice, and escalate to court with an interim injunction if it is ignored, because doing it methodically is what gets results without wasting money.
If your brand is being copied and you want it stopped properly, we can help you enforce, from a firm cease-and-desist notice through to court action if needed. See our cease-and-desist service to take the first step, and if your mark is not yet registered, our trademark registration in India service to put the strongest protection in place.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is trademark infringement in India?
Trademark infringement is the unauthorised use of a registered trademark, or a mark deceptively similar to it, on identical or similar goods or services in a way that is likely to confuse customers about the source of those goods or services. It is defined in Section 29 of the Trade Marks Act, 1999, which also covers related situations like using the mark in a trade name or in advertising that unfairly exploits or harms the brand. Importantly, only a registered trademark can bring an infringement action; unregistered marks must rely on passing off.
What remedies are available for trademark infringement?
Under Section 135 of the Trade Marks Act, a court can grant injunctions (including urgent interim and ex parte orders) to stop the infringing use, award damages or an account of the infringer’s profits, and order the infringing goods to be delivered up and destroyed. In serious cases, search-and-seizure orders and orders against unknown infringers are also available. Separately, deliberate counterfeiting is a criminal offence, carrying imprisonment and fines and enabling police raids and seizures. Civil and criminal actions can be pursued at the same time.
How do I stop someone from using my trademark?
The usual practical sequence is: first, document the infringement thoroughly with dated screenshots, sample purchases, and records of the misuse; second, send a cease-and-desist notice setting out your registration, the infringement, and a deadline to stop, which resolves many disputes without court action; and third, if the notice is ignored, file a civil suit together with an application for an interim injunction to halt the use quickly. For online infringement, you can also use the takedown procedures of e-commerce platforms, social media sites, and domain registrars.
What is the difference between trademark infringement and passing off?
Infringement is the statutory remedy available for a registered trademark under Section 29, and it is generally easier to prove because your registration is strong evidence of your rights. Passing off is the common-law remedy for an unregistered mark, and it requires you to prove three things: that you have genuine goodwill and reputation in the mark, that the other party misrepresented their goods or services as yours, and that you suffered or are likely to suffer damage as a result. Registration makes enforcement significantly simpler.
Can I take action if my trademark is not registered?
Yes, but not through an infringement action. An unregistered trademark cannot sue for infringement under Section 29; instead, you can bring a common-law passing off action. To succeed, you must prove you have built up goodwill and reputation in the mark through use, that the other party’s use misrepresents their goods or services as connected to yours, and that this causes or is likely to cause you damage. This is a genuine remedy but harder to establish than infringement, which is a strong reason to register your mark.
What should I do if I receive a trademark infringement notice?
Do not ignore it, and do not panic. Continuing to use the mark after being formally put on notice can weigh heavily against you if the matter goes to court. Read the notice carefully and take advice on whether the claim is actually well-founded, since you may have genuine defences, such as honest prior use, or that there is no real likelihood of confusion. Depending on the situation, the right response might be to stop, to push back on a weak claim, or to negotiate a coexistence or licensing arrangement, which is often cheaper and faster than litigation.
Written by Prakhar Rai
Prakhar Rai is the founder of My Legal Pal and a licensed attorney enrolled with the Bar Council of India. He started the practice after watching businesses that operate across borders get legal advice in fragments: a clause here, a reaction to a problem there, with no one looking at the whole picture or thinking a few steps ahead. With more than a decade in business and corporate advisory, he came to a simple view. As companies started running on cross-border deals, digital platforms and overlapping regulation, they needed legal strategy built around how they actually work, not just documents drafted after the fact. My Legal Pal is built on that idea: foresight and clarity first, paperwork second. He studied at La Martiniere College, holds an LL.B, and earned a Master of Business Laws from the National Law School of India University, Bangalore, specialising in corporate, banking, intellectual property, finance and securities law. That mix of academic grounding and hands-on advisory work shapes how he and the team approach every matter: commercially, not just technically.
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This article is published for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice. Trademark enforcement law, remedies, and procedure are subject to change and depend on the facts of each case. Always consult a qualified trademark attorney for advice specific to your situation.
