Trademarks – No appeal maintainable against HC’s Single Bench decision in appeal against Registrar’s decision

The Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court has held that prohibition under Section 100A of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 will apply for filing appeal before the Division Bench against the decision of the Single Bench of the High Court wherein the Single Bench had exercised powers under Section 91 of the Trade Marks Act, 1999, i.e., passed an Order against the decision of the Registrar acting under the said Act.

According to the Court, it is immaterial as to whether the original order or the appellate order or decree, impugned before the learned Single Judge, satisfies the tests of order or decree as prescribed under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 and whether the authority passing such original order or the appellate order is a Court or has the trappings of the Court. 

The DB in its decision in the case of Dinesh Kumar Chowdhury v. Registrar of Trade Marks and Another was of the view that for the prohibition under Section 100A to come into operation, only exercise of appeal powers by the Single Bench is required to be satisfied.

Dismissing the appeal filed against the Single Bench decision, the Court noted that when ‘High Court’ was being substituted for ‘Appellate Board’ in Section 91, the provisions of Section 100A of the CPC, prohibiting further appeal, was already in force. The Court was thus of the view that the legislature was hence aware that no further appeal would be available from an order passed by Single Bench of a High Court.