LawIntellectual Property Lawbasic

Intellectual Property

/ˌɪntəˈlɛktʃuəl ˈprɒpərti/

Legal Term

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Definition

Legal rights protecting creations of the mind — inventions, literary and artistic works, designs, symbols, names, and images used in commerce. Major categories: Copyright (original works — literature, music, art — protected automatically for author's life plus 60 years in India, under the Copyright Act, 1957), Patents (inventions — 20-year exclusive right under the Patents Act, 1970), Trademarks (brand identifiers — protected under the Trade Marks Act, 1999), and Geographical Indications (GI — origin-linked product names under GI Act, 1999).

Examples

A software company's code is protected by copyright automatically on creation — no registration needed. Copying the code without licence is infringement.

Darjeeling tea has a Geographical Indication (GI) tag — only tea grown in Darjeeling can be sold as 'Darjeeling Tea.' Using the name for tea grown elsewhere is a violation.

Case Study

In Novartis AG v. Union of India (2013), the Supreme Court upheld the Indian Patents Office's rejection of Novartis' patent for Gleevec (imatinib) under Section 3(d) of the Patents Act — which prevents patents on new forms of known substances unless they show significantly enhanced efficacy. This judgment was globally significant for access to affordable medicines vs. innovation incentives.

Key Cases

Novartis AG v. Union of India

2013

(2013) 6 SCC 1

Upheld Section 3(d) of the Patents Act rejecting evergreening of pharmaceutical patents. Balanced patent protection with access to affordable medicines. Globally significant for TRIPS and generic drug policy.

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Also Known As

IPintellectual property rights

Synonyms

IPintangible property rightscreative rights

Antonyms / Opposites

public domainunprotected work

Related Terms

Dictionary Entry

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