Delhi High Court - Orders
Verizon Trademark Services Llc & Ors vs Nalathoti Ramu & Anr on 21 November, 2025
Author: Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora
Bench: Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora
$~36
* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
+ CS(COMM) 1248/2025 & I.A. 29076/2025 I.A. 29077/2025
VERIZON TRADEMARK SERVICES LLC & ORS. .....Plaintiffs
Through: Mr. Pravin Anand, Ms. Vaishali
Mittal & Mr. Shivang Sharma, Advs.
versus
NALATHOTI RAMU & ANR. .....Defendants
Through: None.
CORAM:
HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE MANMEET PRITAM SINGH ARORA
ORDER
% 21.11.2025 I.A. 29078/2025 (for additional documents)
1. This is an application seeking leave to file additional documents under Order XI Rule 1(4) of CPC [as amended by the Commercial Courts, Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of High Courts Act, 2015 ('Commercial Courts Act')] within thirty [30] days.
2. The Plaintiffs, if they wish to file additional documents, will file the same within thirty [30] days from today, and they shall do so strictly as per the provisions of the Commercial Courts Act and the DHC Rules.
3. For the reasons stated in the application, the same is allowed.
4. Accordingly, the application stands disposed of. I.A. 29079/2025 (for exemption)
5. This is an application under Section 151 of CPC, seeking exemption from filing clearer copies of dim documents.
6. Subject to the Plaintiffs filing the clear copies of dim documents CS(COMM) 1248/2025 Page 1 of 11 This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 24/11/2025 at 22:35:23 sought to be relied upon within thirty (30) days from today, exemption is granted for the present.
7. Accordingly, the application is disposed of.
I.A. 29080/2025 (for extension of time in filing Court Fees)
8. This is an application filed under Section 149 read with Section 151 of CPC seeking extension of time in filing Court fees.
9. This application is allowed subject to the Court fees being deposited within one (1) week, failing which the plaint shall stand rejected under Order VII Rule (b) of CPC.
10. The application stands disposed of.
I.A. 29081/2025 (seeking exemption from pre-institution mediation)
11. This is an application under Section 12A of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015, read with Section 151 CPC, filed by the Plaintiffs seeking exemption from instituting pre-litigation mediation.
12. Having regard to the facts that the present suit contemplates urgent interim relief and in light of the judgment of the Supreme Court in Yamini Manohar v. T.K.D. Keerthi1, exemption from the requirement of pre- institution mediation is granted to the Plaintiffs.
13. Accordingly, the application stands disposed of. I.A. 29082/2025 (seeking exemption from filing documents in CD/pen drive)
14. This is an application filed on behalf of the Plaintiffs under Section 151 of CPC seeking permission to file certain documents on a Compact Disk ['CD']/pen-drive.
1(2024) 5 SCC 815 CS(COMM) 1248/2025 Page 2 of 11 This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 24/11/2025 at 22:35:23
15. The Plaintiffs are directed to file the CD/pen-drive in accordance with Rule 24 of the DHC Rules.
16. Registry may receive the electronic record on a CD/pen-drive so long as it is encrypted with a hash value or in any other non-editable format. The documents contained on the CD/pen-drive shall be placed in the electronic record of the present suit in a format that is non-editable, so that the same can be viewed by the Court during the hearing.
17. Accordingly, the application stands disposed of. I.A. 29083/2025 (seeking additional service by WhatsApp)
18. This is an application under Section 151 of CPC, seeking relief to effect service on Defendant No.1 through WhatsApp on the plea that the e- mail address of Defendant No. 1 is not available.
19. It is stated that advance service has been effected through WhatsApp on 20.11.2025.
20. For the reasons stated in the application, the application is allowed. It is, however, clarified that service of summons in the main suit will be effected through all modes, including ordinary process.
21. Accordingly, the application is disposed of. CS(COMM) 1248/2025
22. Let the plaint be registered as a suit.
23. Summons be issued to Defendant No. 1 by all permissible modes on filing of process fee. No summons be issued to Defendant No. 2 since it's a pro forma party. Affidavit of service be filed within two [2] weeks.
24. The summons shall indicate that the written statement must be filed within thirty [30] days from the date of receipt of the summons. Defendant No.1 shall also file affidavit of admission/denial of the documents filed by CS(COMM) 1248/2025 Page 3 of 11 This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 24/11/2025 at 22:35:23 the Plaintiffs, failing which the written statement shall not be taken on record.
25. The Plaintiffs are at liberty to file replication thereto within thirty [30] days after filing of the written statement. The replication shall be accompanied by affidavit of admission/denial in respect of the documents filed by Defendant No.1, failing which the replication shall not be taken on record.
26. It is made clear that any unjustified denial of documents may lead to an order of costs against the concerned party.
27. Any party seeking inspection of documents may do so in accordance with the DHC Rules.
28. List before the learned Joint Registrar (J) on 09.01.2026.
29. List before Court on 21.04.2026.
I.A. 29077/2025 (seeking interrogatories)
30. This is an application filed under Order 11 Rule 2 read with Section 151 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 ['CPC'], seeking administration of interrogatories upon Defendant No. 1.
31. Issue notice.
32. Reply be filed within four (4) weeks.
33. List before the learned Joint Registrar (J) on 09.01.2026.
34. List before Court on 21.04.2026.
I.A. 29076/2025(application under Order XXXIX Rule 1 and 2 CPC seeking interim injunction)
35. The present application under order XXXIX Rule 1 and 2, read with Section 151 of the CPC, has been filed by the Plaintiffs, seeking a temporary injunction against Defendant No.1.
CS(COMM) 1248/2025 Page 4 of 11This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 24/11/2025 at 22:35:23
36. The underlying suit has been filed by the Plaintiffs seeking permanent injunction restraining infringement of trademarks, passing off, dilution, tarnishment, misrepresentation, unjust enrichment, damages, and other ancillary reliefs.
37. Mr. Praveen Anand, learned counsel for the Plaintiffs, sets up the Plaintiffs' case as under:
37.1 Plaintiff No.1/Verizon Trademark Services LLC is a company based in the USA, holding numerous trademark registrations for the mark VERIZON. Plaintiff No.2/Verizon Licensing Company has been granted an exclusive license by Plaintiff No.1 for the use of VERIZON trademarks, which Plaintiff No.2 has further sub-licensed to Plaintiff No.3/Verizon Communications India Pvt. Ltd.. [hereinafter collectively referred to as the 'Plaintiffs'].
37.2 The Plaintiffs are among the world's leading providers of, inter alia, communications, information technology, and security products and services.
37.3 In 2000, the Plaintiffs first coined and started using the trademark and tradename VERIZON in relation to their operations internationally. The word VERIZON has been derived from the Latin word 'Veritas', which connotes certainty and reliability, and 'Horizon', which signifies forward-
looking and visionary, thereby epitomising the genesis of the Plaintiffs' company name.
37.4 Ever since the adoption of the VERIZON mark, the Plaintiffs have adopted CS(COMM) 1248/2025 Page 5 of 11 This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 24/11/2025 at 22:35:23 ['VERIZON marks']. Plaintiffs' earliest registration is for the wordmark VERIZON in class 9, bearing registration no. 907928 dated 06.03.2000. Details of Plaintiffs' various VERIZON registrations have been set out in paragraph '30' of the plaint.
37.5 Plaintiffs' VERIZON mark has been declared well-known as per Section 2(1)(zg) of the Trademarks Act 1999, vide judgment dated 11.07.2023 in the decision of Verizon Trademark Services LLC v. Vikash Kumar2.
37.6 The Plaintiffs are the proprietors of several domain names incorporating the VERIZON trademarks, including www.verizon.com, www.verizonbusiness.com, www.verizonenterprise.com, and www.verizonconnect.com, among others.
37.7 The Plaintiffs have been openly, continuously, uninterruptedly using the VERIZON marks since their adoption, and the same has resulted in the VERIZON marks becoming a source identifier of the Plaintiffs. The Plaintiffs are also the recipients of several awards and accolades, details of which have been given in paragraph '20' of the plaint. 37.8 They own and operate one of the most expansive end-to-end global Internet Protocol [IP] networks serving more than 2,700 cities in over 150 countries worldwide, including in India. In the year 2024, the Plaintiffs generated a global revenue of USD 134.8 billion. Plaintiff No.3's revenue in India for the year 2021-2022 was Rs. 786.6 crores. Overview of the Defendants 37.9 Defendant No.1/Nalathoti Ramu is the proprietor of M/s Verizon 2 2023 SCC OnLine Del 4453.
CS(COMM) 1248/2025 Page 6 of 11This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 24/11/2025 at 22:35:23 Salon and Spa, and the website with the domain name www.verizonspa.com. Defendant No.1 promotes its spa and salon services under the variants of the mark VERIZON, such as ['impugned marks'].
37.10 Defendant No.2/GoDaddy.com, LLC is the Domain Name Registrar ['DNR'] of Defendant No. 1's website, and has been impleaded as a pro forma Defendant.
Knowledge about Defendant No.1's infringing activities 37.11 Plaintiffs first became aware of Defendant No.1's infringing activities in September 2025, when the Plaintiffs learnt that Defendant No.1 had a registration for the domain name www.verizonspa.com, wherein it hosted an active website, as well as promoted its services on various third-party listings pertaining to VERIZON SPA, VERIZON SALON & SPA, and its variants.
37.12 Upon visiting and perusing the third-party websites containing information of Defendant No.1, the Plaintiffs discovered that Defendant No.1 was openly offering salon and spa services under the impugned marks, thereby falsely suggesting an association, affiliation, or endorsement by the Plaintiffs.
37.13 Plaintiffs issued a cease-and-desist notice on 30.09.2025; however, no response was received. Thereafter, Plaintiffs issued another notice on 27.10.2025, calling upon Defendant No.1 to cease misuse of the Plaintiffs' VERIZON marks; however, Defendant No.1 failed to respond yet again. 37.14 It is stated that the notice dated 30.09.2025, which had been issued by CS(COMM) 1248/2025 Page 7 of 11 This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 24/11/2025 at 22:35:23 the Plaintiffs, was returned. The returned envelope bore the endorsement 'refused', indicating that service of the notice was declined by Defendant No.1. Despite notices, Defendant No.1 continues to promote its services under the impugned VERIZON marks.
37.15 Thus, Defendant No.1 is using the impugned mark as a part of its tradename, domain name, signage, and online listings in order to attract unsuspecting consumers to gain undue commercial advantage, whilst being fully aware of the Plaintiffs' goodwill and reputation. Court's Findings
38. This Court has heard the learned counsel for the Plaintiffs and perused the record.
39. Learned Counsel for the Plaintiffs states that advance service of the suit paper book has been affected upon Defendant No.1 on 20.11.2025 via WhatsApp at the contact number available on its website, and upon Defendant No.2 on the same date via email. Despite advance services, none appears on behalf of either Defendant.
40. A bare perusal of the plaint and comparison of the marks, it is prima facie evident that the impugned marks VERIZON/ / are identical to the Plaintiffs registered VERIZON marks. An unwary consumer of average intelligence and imperfect recollection is likely to be confused between the marks and may be misled into believing that the services offered by Defendant No.1 originate from, or are associated with, the Plaintiffs.
41. The Plaintiffs have registered marks and has contended that the mark CS(COMM) 1248/2025 Page 8 of 11 This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 24/11/2025 at 22:35:23 VERIZON is a coined mark; they have issued and served cease-and-desist notices to Defendant No.1, which have remained unanswered; Defendant No.1 has elected not to remain present despite advance service. In these facts, it prima facie appears that Defendant No.1 is choosing to ignore the proprietary claim of the Plaintiffs in its registered VERIZON marks and has no reasonable defence.
42. In the plaint at paragraph '46' there is averment that Defendant No.1's JustDial listing has recently been modified to display the name 'Horizon Salon and Spa'. However, since none has appeared on behalf of Defendant No. 1, this Court does not have clarity if Defendant No. 1 has migrated to a new name. It is noted however that the website www.verizonspa.com continues to remain active and displays the name VERIZON salon and spa. It appears to the Court that the matter can put to rest if Defendant No. 1 has changed its name to Horizon Salon and Spa and undertakes to discontinue the use of the impugned mark VERIZON in any manner including as a part of its domain name.
43. However, for the interregnum in view of the averments made in the application and the submissions made by the learned counsel for the Plaintiffs, the Plaintiffs have made out a prima facie case in their favour. Since the Plaintiff has a well-known registered trademark for VERIZON, and has been extensively using the mark since 2000, the balance of convenience lies in favour of the Plaintiffs for the grant of temporary injunction against Defendant No.1. Defendant No.1's actions, if not restrained, might cause the Plaintiffs to suffer irreparable harm, loss and injury not only to its monetary loss but also to the Plaintiff's brand identity and misrepresentation of its services in the marketplace.
CS(COMM) 1248/2025 Page 9 of 11This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 24/11/2025 at 22:35:23
44. Accordingly, until the next date of hearing, the following direction is issued:
i. Defendant No.1, their partners, principals, proprietor, directors, officers, employees, agents, distributors, franchisees, suppliers, licensees, affiliates, subsidiaries representatives, group companies and assignees is/ are restrained from using, offering its services, marketing and advertising its business and/or allowing or permitting third parties to use, market and/or advertise the impugned marks VERIZON/ and/ or any other trade mark or name identical and/or similar to the Plaintiffs' trademark VERIZON and its formatives either as a trademark, trade name, corporate name, domain name, social media handles or part thereof and/or in any other manner whatsoever.
45. Issue Notice to the Defendant Nos. 1 and 2, through all permissible modes, upon filing of process fees, returnable on the next date of hearing.
46. Compliance with Order XXXIX Rule 3 CPC be done within a period of one [1] week from today.
47. List before the learned Joint Registrar (J) on 09.01.2026.
48. List before Court on 21.04.2026.
49. The digitally signed copy of this order, duly uploaded on the official website of the Delhi High Court, www.delhihighcourt.nic.in, shall be treated as a certified copy of the order for the purpose of ensuring compliance. No CS(COMM) 1248/2025 Page 10 of 11 This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 24/11/2025 at 22:35:23 physical copy of order shall be insisted by any authority/entity or litigant.
MANMEET PRITAM SINGH ARORA, J NOVEMBER 21, 2025/ng/aa CS(COMM) 1248/2025 Page 11 of 11 This is a digitally signed order.
The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 24/11/2025 at 22:35:23