Delhi High Court Grants INR 217 Crores as Lost Profits in Patent Infringement Matter

New Delhi: In a landmark judgment on Patent Law in India, Justice Jyoti Singh of the Delhi High Court has granted an unprecedented amount of INR 217 Crores (US$ 26.1 Million) as compensatory damages for lost profits to the Plaintiff, namely Communication Components Antenna Inc., a Canadian enterprise, against Mobi Antenna Technologies (Shenzhen) Co. Ltd., a Chinese corporation.

In a detailed ruling issued by the Delhi High Court on 16th May 2024, the Honble Court, after relying on the pleadings and evidence led by both parties, found the Defendants to be infringing the Plaintiffs intellectual property rights in its Indian Patent No. IN240893.

The Court was hearing a patent infringement suit filed by CCAI against Mobi for infringing a patent granted for an invention called Asymmetrical Beams for Spectrum Efficiency in telecommunication antennas. As per the suit, CCAI had asserted that the novelty of the patent was in the fact that by changing the beam pattern, greater efficacy in the usage of spectrum could be achieved.

The Court determined that the damages had to be paid on the basis of lost profits from lost market share. Accordingly, based on the evidence led, it estimated the lost market share of CCAI to be 47,355 units and the profit per unit to be $550. Based on this, the Court arrived at a figure of 2,17,47,78,375 (approximately 217 crores, which is equal to approximately US$ 26.1 Million) as the lost profits of CCAI.

This judgment demonstrates the Delhi High Courts rigorous approach to upholding the rights in intellectual property and awarding damages to compensate for the loss caused to the right holder. This judgment provides much-needed assurance to right-holders that an infringer cannot merely trample over intellectual property rights. One of the primary takeaways from this litigation concerning IP rights is the successful monetization of intellectual property by way of grant of compensation and damages. This is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow for the right-holder!

Commenting on the judgment, Mr. Sidhant Goel, Senior Partner at Sim And San, Attorneys at Law stated, We are all elated with the outcome. It is truly a watershed moment in Indian jurisprudence as regards the grant of compensatory damages for lost profits. This judgment is expected to lend guidance on the evidentiary standards of assessment and the grant of compensatory damages on the basis of lost market share.

Communication Components Antenna Inc. was represented by Mr. Sidhant Goel, Mr. Mohit Goel, Mr. Aditya Goel, and Mr. Deepankar Mishra from Sim And San - Attorneys at Law, and was led by Mr. J. Sai Deepak, Advocate.

Mobi Antenna Technologies was earlier represented by Advocates from Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co., who, due to a lack of instructions from Mobi, had sought discharge from the matter in January 2022.