articles
Intellectual Property
Demystifying the scope of amendments in patent claims – Indian jurisdiction
20 December 2021
Amendments to a patent application form an essential element in demarcating the scope of inventions. In India, claim amendments are governed by Sections 57 to 59 of the Patents Act, 1970 (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Act’).
SEBI’s new norms for related party transactions – An overview
16 December 2021
In this article, we will be reviewing the changes made by Securities and Exchange Board of India (‘SEBI’) in the related party transaction (‘RPT’) regime for listed entities. On 9 November 2021, SEBI issued the SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) (Sixth Amendment) Regulations, 2021 (‘Amendment Regulations’),
Competition and Antitrust
Leniency, dawn raid & penalty | A case of cartelization in the beer market
26 November 2021
The wave of dawn raids by Competition Commission of India (“CCI”) has yet again shown its result in the form of the recent decision of CCI, which found three beer companies to be operating an all-India cartel. In an order dated 24.09.2021 , CCI found United Breweries Limited (“UBL”), Carlsberg India Private Limited (“Carlsberg”),
Intellectual Property
What’s in domain?
26 November 2021
Technological globalization, on account of its international, economical, and accessible character, has forced businesses to shift their business models from physical markets to electronic commerce (e-commerce) portals. In such a scenario, domain names, i.e., the user-friendly form of websites’ IP addresses, form an integral part of businesses as their identifiers in the realm of e-commerce.
Goods and Services Tax
Margin Scheme – Few unanswered issues
25 November 2021
Generally, GST is payable on the transaction value which is the price paid or payable for the supply of goods and services when transaction takes place between un-related persons and price is the sole consideration for supply. However, a registered person may at his option, discharge tax on sale of used or second-hand goods on the margin amount which is the difference between selling price and purchase price of the goods.
Corporate
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs): Are we ready to launch the spac-ship?
23 November 2021
Although the inception of modern Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (‘SPACs’) started in the United States in the early 1990s, the recent spike in this phenomenon has undoubtedly taken the markets by storm. A current favourite for companies intending to go public is by way of SPACs. They are commonly referred to as ‘blank cheque entities’ or ‘shell companies’ because they raise capital from an initial public offering (‘IPO’) to acquire an unspecified operating business.
Direct Tax
Determination of year of taxability for transfers arising out of registered Joint Development Agreements
22 November 2021
In recent times, the most preferred mechanism adopted by the land owners to transfer their immovable property has been under a Joint Development Agreement (‘JDA’). This mode is usually preferred by those land owners who want to develop their lands but do not have the requisite expertise to carry out the same. Therefore, they enter into a JDA with a developer for developing and marketing the land parcel to the buyers for a mutual benefit.
International Trade & WTO
Anti-absorption provisions: New tool for strengthening trade remedial measures
22 November 2021
In Budget 2021-22, the Finance Minister announced the introduction of statutory provisions to check absorption of anti-dumping duty (‘ADD’) and countervailing duty (‘CVD’) measures imposed by the Central Government. These provisions were inserted into Section 9 and Section 9A of the Customs Tariff Act, 1975.
Goods and Services Tax
Intermediary services – Why Circular No. 159 should not be ignored?
26 October 2021
After the 45th meeting of GST Council, when Press Release stated that in order to remove ambiguity and legal disputes, Circular will be issued providing clarification(s) on scope of ‘intermediary services’, while some cheered with hope, others did not want to raise their expectations.
Intellectual Property
Patents – Delhi High Court rules on disclosure vis-à-vis invalidity on ground of obviousness
21 October 2021
The article elaborately discusses a recent decision of the Delhi High Court wherein the Court clarified that the mere coverage in every case does not result in obviousness. It also confirmed that the patent applications related to selection inventions may be granted, provided they satisfy three conditions. The High Court also held that coverage and disclosure are distinct concepts.
Corporate
‘Fall-back liability’ under the Consumer Protection (e-Commerce) Rules, 2020: Stricter norms in digital diaspora
19 October 2021
It is no surprise that within a short span of time e-commerce has had a tremendous impact on consumers all over the world. Such dramatic change in the current environment for both businesses and consumers has also posed new challenges, which made it imperative to bring a codified legislation to cater to the interests of the consumers of the e-commerce space.
International Trade & WTO
Imports by the domestic industry – Law and practice in India
19 October 2021
Applications for initiating anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations are usually filed by or on behalf of the ‘domestic industry’. Therefore, one of the foremost requirements in any Anti-Dumping (‘AD’) or Countervailing Duty (‘CVD’) investigation is to identify the scope of the ‘domestic industry’.
Direct Tax
CSR Regulations and charitable institutions – Recent developments
18 October 2021
With the advent of The Companies Act, 2013 (‘Companies Act’), the corporates were casted with the mandatory Corporate Social Responsibility (‘CSR’) obligation. Section 135 of the Companies Act provides that every company meeting a stipulated threshold shall spend at least 2% of the average net profits earned during the three immediately preceding financial years, towards CSR activities.
Goods and Services Tax
Asset distribution on retirement of partners – A transaction with multiple GST issues
30 September 2021
The retirement of partners from the partnership firms is a universal phenomenon. Further, it is not an aberrant practice for partnership firms to distribute assets to its partners at the time of retirement. However, with issues cropping up in the GST law, such distribution of assets to the retiring partners is an area of concern.
Competition and Antitrust
Vertical restraints: A competition analysis of car dealer discount policy
29 September 2021
The Competition Commission of India (“CCI”) in its order dated 23.08.2021 penalized Maruti Suzuki India Limited (“Maruti”) with a fine of INR 200 crore for its Discount Control Policy (“DCP”). The DCP restricted the amount of discount a Maruti dealer could offer to its customers. Maruti also required the dealers to seek prior approval if they wanted to offer discounts (cash and non-cash) beyond the prescribed limits.
Intellectual Property
Meritorious win: Patentability of computer related inventions in India
27 September 2021
In the case of Ferid Allani v. Union of India and Ors., the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (‘IPAB’) set aside the refusal order of the Indian Patent Office (‘IPO’) and allowed the appellant’s patent application.
Corporate
Prepaid Instruments – An analysis of master directions issued by RBI
20 September 2021
Banks regulator, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), on 27 August 2021, issued the Master Directions on Prepaid Payment Instruments (‘MD PPI’) to introduce significant changes to the existing legal regime pertaining to the prepaid instruments (PPI) viz., under the Master Directions on Issuance and Operation of Prepaid Payment Instruments (‘2017 MD’).
Deciphering the scope of ‘goods’-A labyrinthine task!
20 September 2021
The scope and ambit of ‘goods’ has always been a contentious issue from a taxation perspective. Tax policies in India have witnessed an evolution of diverse taxes levied on the acts of production, manufacture, sale, lease and transfer of ‘goods’. Thus, situations where one has had to contend with the question of whether an article qualifies as ‘goods’ has been rather frequent.
Direct Tax
Rollback of retro tax: A step in the right direction
17 September 2021
In January 2012, the Supreme Court of India gave relief to foreign investors through its landmark decision in Vodafone International Holdings BV v. Union of India (‘Vodafone case’). However, in a matter of months, the ratio laid down by the Supreme Court was rendered infructuous by way of amendments to the Income-tax Act (‘IT Act’), which were given retrospective effect from 1962.