Breather For Serum Institute As Court Rejects Trademark-Violation Plea Against `Covishield'

A local court on Saturday rejected an application seeking injunction against the use of the "Covishield" as brand name by vaccine-producer Serum Institute of India (SII). 

Cutis-Biotech, a pharmaceutical firm, filed a suit on January 4, claiming it was a prior user of the brand name—‘Covishield’, and sought to restrain Serum Institute of India from using the name.

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Serum Institute of India (SII) is developing a coronavirus vaccine named Covishield, in partnership with the University of Oxford and British-Swedish company AstraZeneca. The Indian government has successfully purchased 11 million doses of the Covishield vaccine.

While the court order was not available immediately, the lawyer of Cutis-Biotech, which had filed the suit, said it would file an appeal in the High Court.

SII had told the court that the two companies operate in different product categories and there is no scope for confusion over the trademark.

"Court has rejected the application," said SII's lawyer Hitesh Jain.

Advocate Aditya Soni, lawyer of Cutis-Biotech, said the order copy was not yet available, but operative order was read out in the court. "We will file an appeal against the order in the high court," he said.

(With PTI Inputs)