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CS Professional · Intellectual Property Rights - Law and Practice · Types of Intellectual Property

Meera, a Pune-based freelance illustrator, draws an original comic character on her own initiative and does not register it anywhere. A rival firm copies the drawing on its packaging. Under the Indian Copyright Act, 1957, what is Meera's position?

Meera holds copyright in her original drawing from the moment it is created, because Indian copyright protection is automatic. Registration is optional and only gives evidentiary value, so she can sue the rival for infringement without having registered the work.

  1. AShe has no remedy because registration is mandatory before suing for infringement
  2. BShe has copyright from creation as an artistic work and can sue, since registration is not a condition for protectionCorrect
  3. CCopyright arises only after the character is used in trade for at least one year
  4. DShe can sue only under the Trade Marks Act because drawings are not protected by copyright

Explanation

Copyright in an original artistic work arises automatically on creation. Registration under the Copyright Act is optional and serves as prima facie evidence of particulars, so it is not a precondition to suing. The first option wrongly treats registration as mandatory.

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