Supreme Court Transfers 'SUPREME' Cross-Suit Trademark Dispute To Neutral Forum In Ahmedabad
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Resolving a bitter jurisdictional standoff between two corporate entities locked in cross-trademark infringement suits across different states, the Supreme Court has invoked its discretionary powers to transfer both competing litigations to a completely neutral forum. A bench comprising Justice S.V.N. Bhatti and Justice N.V. Anjaria addressed mutual transfer petitions arising out of parallel commercial suits instituted in Indore and New Delhi over the trademark 'SUPREME'.
Key Takeaways
- Neutral Forum Adjudication: When rival litigants oppose each other's chosen jurisdictions in cross-suits, the Supreme Court may exercise statutory discretion to select an independent neutral location.
- Consolidation of Cross-Suits: Prevents conflicting judicial determinations by ensuring all interconnected trademark infringement and passing-off claims are tried before a single competent court.
- Procedural Efficiency: Eliminates multi-forum litigation bottlenecks, streamlining evidence recording and trial proceedings in commercial disputes.
Court Observations and Directions
The Supreme Court observed that counsel for both parties agreed that the cross-suits ought to be tried before a single judicial court, even though they opposed the specific locations selected by each other. Refraining from commenting on the underlying merits of the dispute, the bench deemed it appropriate to consolidate the matters outside both contested forums. The Supreme Court stated that "The dispute between the parties centres on trademark infringement, etc. In effect, the commercial suits or cross-suits seek prayers restraining the Defendant from causing breach of trademark, etc... By exercising the jurisdiction and discretion vested in the Court, CS (Comm) No. 134 of 2025 in the Court of District Judge (Commercial), Indore, and CS No. 1294 of 2025 before the High Court of Delhi, are transferred to the City Civil Court, Ahmedabad."
Therefore, the Apex Court directed the Courts where the suits were instituted to transfer the respective Plaints to the City Civil Court in Ahmedabad. The Bench ordered the parties involved to appear before the Ahmedabad City Civil Court on 26th November, 2026.
Ratio
In concurrent commercial cross-suits involving identical or overlapping trademark infringement claims filed in different territorial jurisdictions, the Supreme Court may exercise its discretionary transfer jurisdiction to move both proceedings to a neutral competent court to ensure consolidated trial and prevent multiplicity of legal proceedings.
Background
The conflict originated when a suit was filed before the District Judge (Commercial Court), Indore, seeking a permanent injunction against the use of the trademark 'SUPREME', alongside demands for asset disclosures, removal of goods from e-commerce platforms, and damages. Simultaneously, a cross-suit was instituted before the High Court of Delhi seeking permanent injunctions for trademark infringement, passing off, copyright infringement, dilution, rendition of accounts, damages of over Rs. 2 Crores, and a declaration of 'SUPREME' as a well-known mark under Section 2(1)(zg) of the Trade Marks Act, 1999.
Both parties subsequently approached the Apex Court seeking transfer of the opposing party's suit to their respective preferred jurisdictions. Observing that both sides agreed on a unified trial but disagreed on the venue, the Supreme Court disposed of both transfer petitions by transferring all proceedings to the City Civil Court, Ahmedabad.
Case Details:
Case No.: Transfer Petition (Civil) No. 3594 of 2025 with Transfer Petition (Civil) No. 175 of 2026
Neutral Citation: 2026 INSC 1170
Case Title: M/S The Supreme Industries Limited v. M/S Supremo India Private Limited
Appearances:
For the Petitioner(s): Mr. Neeraj Kishan Kaul, Senior Advocate; Ms. S. Janani, Advocate
Source: 2026 CaseBase(SC) 9505
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