S. D. Gunadasa vs Kandasamy Doresamy – CA NO. 896/2000-2013

In the case between S. D. Gunadasa (trading as “Dasa Industries”) and Kandasamy Doresamy, Karuppanan Tevarangan, John Bernard Gunasekera (all trading as “Duro Pipe Industries”), the issue concerned whether the defendants’ registration of the “Duro” trade mark (No. 41616, class 19 for PVC pipes) should be expunged from the register of trademarks and whether any residual rights remained with the plaintiff following the lapse of his original registration for garments. It was held that the defendants’ registration and use of the “Duro” mark in class 19 were lawful, and the plaintiff, having failed to renew his registration for garments after 1978, retained no entitlement to the mark as applied to PVC pipes. The court relied upon the provisions of the Code of Intellectual Property Act and found