U.S. Green Building Council Vs. Deming Certification Services Pvt Ltd

U.S. Green Building Council sued Deming Certification Services Pvt Ltd in 2022 alleging trademark infringement, copyright infringement and passing off by the defendant's use of marks including a circular logo with building design, the abbreviation IGBC and content copied from the plaintiff's website in relation to green building certification services. The defendant filed a written statement but thereafter stopped appearing, leading to proceedings ex parte. The plaintiff moved an application under Order VIII Rules 1 and 10 CPC for judgment on admissions and non-traversal. The Delhi High Court found the defendant's written statement evasive without specific denial of plaintiff's assertions of prior adoption, registration, reputation and deceptive similarity, treated key averments as admitted, held infringement, copyright violation and passing off established, decreed the suit with permanent injunction, delivery up and costs of Rs. 5 lakhs.

• Non-specific or evasive denials in a written statement amount to admission under Order VIII Rule 5 CPC, entitling the plaintiff to judgment under Order VIII Rule 10 where the defendant ceases to appear (Paras on admissions and application of Order VIII).
• Use of a deceptively similar logo and abbreviation (IGBC resembling plaintiff's known marks) along with copied website content in identical services (green building certification) constitutes infringement, copyright infringement and passing off (Paras on comparison of marks/content and likelihood of confusion).
• In ex parte proceedings, where written statement contains admissions due to lack of proper denial, the court can pronounce judgment without requiring further evidence from the plaintiff (Paras on procedure under Order VIII Rules 1 & 10).

Case Title: U.S. Green Building Council Vs. Deming Certification Services Pvt Ltd Order Date: December 24, 2025 Case Number: CS(COMM) 664/2022, I.A. 15660/2022, I.A. 3362/2023, I.A. 174/2024, I.A. 4214/2024, I.A. 9580/2024 & I.A. 20660/2025 Neutral Citation: Not available in document Name of Court: High Court of Delhi at New Delhi Name of Judge: Hon'ble Mr. Justice Tejas Karia

[Readers are advised not to treat this as substitute for legal advise as it may contain errors in perception, interpretation, and presentation] [Written By: Advocate Ajay Amitabh Suman, IP Adjutor [Patent and Trademark Attorney], High Court of Delhi]