Brand name on homeopathic medicines established through name and symbol on label, defeating complete exemption under the notification.

Use of the appellant's name and a lighted lamp on homeopathic medicines was treated as a brand name because the label, read with the symbol, indicated a trade connection between the goods and the person using the mark. Explanation 2 to Notification No. 12/2012-CE defines brand name broadly to cover a name or mark used so as to identify a connection in the course of trade. The medicines were sold under generic names, but the additional name and symbol on the label showed proprietary association with the manufacturer. The facts were distinguished from cases involving a house mark and a separate brand for different products, and complete exemption was denied.

---

---

Issues: Whether the use of the appellant's name along with a lighted lamp on homeopathic medicines amounted to a brand name under Notification No. 12/2012-CE dated 17.03.2012, and consequently whether the appellant was entitled to complete exemption.

Analysis: Explanation 2 to the notification defines brand name broadly to include a name or mark, including a symbol, monogram, label, signature or invented words, used in relation to a product so as to indicate a connection in the course of trade between the product and a person using such mark. The medicines were sold under generic names with the appellant's name and symbol on the label, which indicated a trade connection between the goods and the manufacturer. The facts were distinguished from the cited precedents where a house mark and a separate brand name were used for different products. The mark on the goods was held to identify the goods as the appellant's own manufacture and to indicate proprietary connection.

Conclusion: The mark constituted a brand name, and the appellant was not entitled to complete exemption under Notification No. 12/2012-CE dated 17.03.2012.

---