Skip to main content

Quick and decisive actions of officials at the Customs Office, Pune, achieved a major success for Ferrero SpA (hereinafter Right Holder or Ferrero) in a case of parallel importation. In an unprecedented development, a third-party  importer of foreign goods, not earmarked for sale in India by the manufacturer, was made to shoulder responsibility for their import.

Prime Fabzone Pvt. Ltd. (Importer) had imported Ferrero products in India which were not in compliance with the applicable Indian laws, that is the Legal Metrology Act and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). However, the goods did not violate the  intellectual property rights of the Right Holder as these appeared to be original.

Ferrero raised its serious concerns about the imported products with the Customs because these did not comply with the applicable laws in India which would cause the Indian regulatory authorities to hold the Right Holder liable for any irregularity or breach arising out of the sale of Ferrero products notwithstanding that these were obtained through parallel imports.

In order to safeguard the interests of Ferrero, the Pune Customs office obtained an undertaking from the Importer in the form of an indemnity bond to the Customs stating that the Importer shall indemnify the Right Holder for any financial and legal liability arising out of the said parallel importation of Ferrero products.

This is an unprecedented instance of an importer undertaking to bear liability arising from parallel imports of a right holder’s products into India. The outcome is of importance for overseas manufacturers who run the risk of regulatory non-compliance and legal liability for goods which they neither imported nor intended to sell in India.

Most Recent

News & Insights

VIEW ALL
Thought Leadership
Jul 02, 2025

‘First published on WTR’ By: Safir Anand In summary This article explores the new IP Reforms 3.0 initiative in India and various developments in the

Promising reform aims to modernise IP management and protection in India 
Thought Leadership
Jun 28, 2025

‘First published on WTR’ By: Saif Khan and Prajjwal Kushwaha Legal framework Trademarks Act 1999 The Trademarks Act is the parent statutory regulation

India: lack of court harmonisation in tackling emerging online infringement threats underscores need for further case law
Thought Leadership
May 29, 2025

‘First published on Lexology’ By: Sandhya Singh, Sampada Kapoor and Kritika Gandhi Trademarks play a pivotal role in distinguishing the goods or services

Heir of the Family Trademarks
Thought Leadership
May 15, 2025

‘First published on India Business Law Journal’ By: Pravin Anand, Dr. Ajai Garg and Alvin Antony The ascendancy of large language models (LLMs) has

Navigating the AI frontier: India’s sovereign LLM quest