Delhi High Court stays Rs 340-crore trademark infringement order against Amazon

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has granted interim relief to Amazon Technologies, a subsidiary of global e-commerce firm Amazon, in a trademark infringement case related to the Beverly Hills Polo Club brand.

On Tuesday, a division bench comprising Justices Hari Shankar and Ajay Digpaul stayed a February ruling that had directed the company to pay nearly Rs 340 crore ($39 million) in damages to UK-based Lifestyle Equities. 

The court issued the stay without requiring Amazon to deposit any amount in advance, but the company has been asked to give an undertaking that it will pay the damages if the appeal does not succeed. The bench also clarified that the stay would have no bearing on the final outcome of the case.

The dispute stems from a 2020 lawsuit filed by Lifestyle Equities, which manages the Beverly Hills Polo Club brand. The company alleged that Amazon Technologies and other parties were involved in the unauthorised use of a deceptively similar mark on apparel and related products sold on Amazon’s platforms.

Lifestyle Equities claimed that the infringing mark was used on clothing items manufactured and sold by Amazon Technologies under its Symbol brand. It also named Cloudtail India, a former leading seller on Amazon.in, as a party involved in the sale of the infringing products.

In October 2020, the high court issued an interim injunction restraining Amazon and Cloudtail from using the contested mark and ordered the removal of related product listings. Amazon Technologies did not appear in the proceedings at the time and was proceeded against ex-parte.

Cloudtail India, however, admitted to having sold products bearing the disputed mark between 2015 and July 2020, reporting total sales of Rs 23.9 lakh with a profit margin of approximately 20%. The company offered to settle, but mediation efforts failed. Subsequently, the court awarded Rs 4.78 lakh in damages to Lifestyle Equities through a decree against Cloudtail.

In its final judgement dated 25 February 2025, the single-judge bench held Amazon Technologies liable for damages amounting to approximately Rs 340 crore. The court pointed to Amazon’s close commercial links with Cloudtail, concluding that the company was directly responsible for the trademark infringement.

The judgement referenced the licensing and distribution agreement between Amazon and Cloudtail, which gave the latter extensive rights to use Amazon’s branding and trademarks. This, the court said, undermined Amazon’s claim of being a neutral intermediary.

The court awarded $5 million to Lifestyle Equities for additional advertising and promotional costs incurred in defending its brand, along with $33.78 million in compensatory damages for lost royalties, bringing the total to $38.78 million (around Rs 336 crore), in addition to litigation expenses.

Legal commentators described the February order as significant because it established that e-commerce platforms could be held directly liable for trademark violations involving sellers on their platforms. 

The court rejected the long-held defence that such platforms merely act as intermediaries, citing Amazon’s control over sellers and commercial agreements as key factors in assigning liability.