1. The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint a person to be known as the Controller-General of Patents, Designs, and Trade Marks, who shall be the (Registrar of Trade Marks) for the purposes of this Act.
2. The Central Government may appoint such other officers with such designations as it thinks fit for the purpose of discharging, under the superintendence and direction of the Registrar, such functions of the Registrar under this Act as he may from time to time authorise them to discharge.

1. For the purpose of this Act there shall be established a Registry which shall be known as the Trade Marks Registry.
2. The head office of the Trade Marks Registry shall be at such place as the Central Government may specify, and for the purpose of facilitating the registration of trade marks, there may be established at such places as the Central Government may think fit, branch offices of the Trade Marks Registry.
3. The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, define the territorial limits within which an office of the Trade Marks Registry may exercise its functions.
4. There shall be a seal of the Trade Marks Registry.

1. For the purposes of this Act, a record called the Register of Trade Marks shall be kept at the head office of the Trade Marks Registry, wherein shall be entered all registered trade marks with the names, addresses and descriptions of the proprietors, notifications of assignments and transmissions, the names, addresses and descriptions of registered users, disclaimers, conditions, limitations and such other matters relating to registered trade marks as may be prescribed.
2. No notice of any trust, express or implied or constructive, shall be entered in the register and no such notice shall be receivable by the Registrar.
3. Subject to the superintendence and direction of the Central Government, the register shall be kept under the control and management of the Registrar.
4. There shall be kept at each branch office of the Trade Marks Registry a copy of the register and such of the other documents mentioned in section 125 as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, direct.

1. The register referred to in section 6 shall be divided into two parts called respectively Part A and Part B.
2. The Register of Trade Marks existing at the commencement of this Act shall be incorporated with and form part of Part A of the register, and this Part shall comprise all trade marks entered in the Register of Trade Marks existing at the commencement of this Act and all trade marks which after such commencement may be entered in Part A of the register.
3. Part B of the register shall comprise all trade marks which after the commencement of this Act may be entered in Part B of the register.

1. A trade mark may be registered in respect of any or all of the goods comprised in a prescribed class of goods.
2. Any question arising as to the class within which any goods fall shall be determined by the Registrar whose decision in the matter shall be final.

1. A trade mark shall not be registered in Part A of the register unless it contains or consists of at least one of the following essential particulars, namely,-
   1. the name of a company, individual or firm represented in a special or particular manner;
   2. the signature of the applicant for registration or some predecessor in his business;
   3. one or more invented words;
   4. one or more words having no direct reference to the character or quality of the goods and not being, according to its ordinary signification a geographical name or a surname or a personal name or any common abbreviation thereof or the name of a sect, caste or tribe in India;
   5. any other distinctive mark.
2. A name, signature or word, other than such as fall within the descriptions in clauses (a), (b), (c) and (d) of sub-section (1) shall not be registrable in Part A of the register except upon evidence of its distinctiveness.
3. For the purposes of this Act, the expression "distinctive" in relation to the goods in respect of which a trade mark is proposed to be registered, means adapted to distinguish goods with which the proprietor of the trade mark is or may be connected in the course of trade from goods in the case of which no such connection subsists either generally or, where the trade mark is proposed to be registered subject to limitations, in relation to use within the extent of the registration.
4. A trade mark shall not be registered in Part B of the register unless the trade mark in relation to the goods in respect of which it is proposed to be registered is distinctive, or is not distinctive but is capable of distinguishing goods with which the proprietor of a trade mark is or may be connected in the course of trade from goods in the case of which no such connection subsists, either generally or, where the trade mark is proposed to be registered subject to limitations, in relation to use within the extent of the registration.
5. In determining whether a trade mark is distinctive or is capable of distinguishing as aforesaid, the tribunal may have regard to the extent to which-
   1. a trade mark is inherently distinctive or is inherently capable of distinguishing as aforesaid; and
   2. by reason of the use of the trade mark or of any other circumstances, the trade mark is in fact so adapted to distinguish or is in fact capable of distinguishing as aforesaid.
6. Subject to the other provisions of this section, a trade mark in respect of any goods-
   1. registered in Part A of the register may be registered in Part B of the register; and
   2. registered in Part B of the register may be registered in Part A of the register;

   in the name of the same proprietor of the same trade mark or any part or parts thereof.

1. A trade mark may be limited wholly or in part to one or more specified colours, and any such limitation shall be taken into consideration by the tribunal having to decide on the distinctive character of the trade mark.
2. So far as a trade mark is registered without limitation of colour, it shall be deemed to be registered for all colours.

1. the use of which would be likely to deceive or cause confusion; or
2. the use of which could be contrary to any law for the time being in force; or
3. which comprises or contains scandalous or obscene matter; or
4. which comprises or contains any matter likely to hurt the religious susceptibilities of any class or section of the citizens of India; or
5. Which would otherwise be disentitled to protection in a court; shall not be registered as a trade mark.

1. Save as provided in sub-section (3), no trade mark shall be registered in respect of any goods or description of goods which is identical with or deceptively similar to a trade mark which is already registered in the name of a different proprietor in respect of the same goods or description of goods.
2. Where separate applications are made by different persons to be registered as proprietors respectively of trade marks which are identical or nearly resemble each other in respect of the same goods or description of goods, the Registrar may defer the acceptance of the application or applications bearing a later date until after the determination of the proceedings in respect of the earlier application, and may dispose of such application or application or applications in the light of the evidence tendered in relation to earlier application and the oppositions thereto, if any.
3. In case of honest concurrent use or of other special circumstances which, in the opinion of the Registrar, make it proper so to do, he may permit the registration by more than one proprietor of trade marks which are identical or nearly resemble each other (whether any such trade mark is already registered or not) in respect of the same goods or description of goods, subject to such conditions and limitations, if any, as the Registrar may think fit to impose.

1. No word which is the commonly used the accepted name of any single chemical element or single chemical compound (as distinguished from a mixture) shall be registered as a trade mark in respect of a chemical substance or preparation, and any such registration shall, notwithstanding anything in section 32, be deemed for the purposes of section 56 to be an entry made in the register without sufficient cause or an entry wrongly remaining on the register, as the circumstances may require.
2. This section shall not apply to a word which is used to denote only a brand or make of the element or compound as made by the proprietor or a registered user of the trade mark, as distinguished from the element or compound as made by others, and in association with a suitable name or description open to the public use.

1. Where the proprietor of a trade mark claims to be entitled to the exclusive use of any part thereof separately, he may apply to register the whole and the part as separate trade marks.
2. Each such separate trade mark shall satisfy all the conditions applying to, and have all the incidents of, an independent trade mark.
3. Where a person claiming to be the proprietor of several trade marks in respect of the same goods or description of goods which, while resembling each other in the material particulars thereof, yet differ in respect of-
   1. statement of the goods in relation to which they are respectively used or proposed to be used; or
   2. statements of number, price, quality or names of places; or
   3. other matter of a non-distinctive character which does not substantially affect the identity of the trade mark; or
   4. Colour;

seeks to register those trade marks, they may be registered as a series in one registration.

1. Where a trade mark which is registered, or is the subject of an application for registration, in respect of any goods is identical with another trade mark which is registered, or is the subject of an application for registration, in the name of the same proprietor in respect of the same goods or description of goods or so nearly resembles it as to be likely to deceive or cause confusion if used by a person other than the proprietor, the Registrar may, at any time, require that the trade marks shall be entered on the register as associated trade marks.
2. Where a trade mark and any part thereof are, in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (1) of section 15, registered as separate trade marks in the name of the same proprietor, they shall be deemed to be, and shall be registered as, associated trade marks.
3. All trade marks registered in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (3) of section 15 as a series in one registration shall be deemed to be, and shall be registered as, associated trade marks.
4. On application made in the prescribed manner by the registered proprietor of two or more trade marks registered as associated trade marks, the Registrar may dissolve the association as respects any of them if he is satisfied that there would be no likelihood of deception or confusion being caused if that trade mark were used by any other person in relation to any of the goods in respect of which it is registered, and may amend the register accordingly.

1. contains any part-
   1. which is not the subject of a separate application by the proprietor for registration as a trade mark; or
   2. which is not separately registered by the proprietor as a trade mark; or
2. contains any matter which is common to the trade or is otherwise of a non-distinctive character;

the tribunal, in deciding whether the trade mark shall be entered or shall remain on the register, may require, as a condition of its being on the register, that the proprietor shall either disclaim any right to the exclusive use of such part or of all or any portion of such matter, as the case may be, to the exclusive use of which the tribunal holds him not to be entitled, or make such other disclaimer as the tribunal may consider necessary for the purpose of defining the rights of the proprietor under the registration:

Provided that no disclaimer shall affect any rights of the proprietor of a trade mark except such as arise out of the registration of the trade mark in respect of which the disclaimer is made.