INSIGHTS

Introduction : Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has been a promising technology of India’s digital economy for years. Be it a roadside peddler/vendor or a large retailer, it has made digital payments instant and without a visible transaction fee. The “free” payment system often raises an economic question: who pays for the infrastructure that makes such transactions free? The question suddenly becomes relevant because from 15th October 2026, a Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) of

Introduction : Section 42 of the Companies Act 2013 defines private placement and provides provisions for issue of shares on private placement basis. Section 42(7) of the Act prohibits the company issuing securities from using public advertisements, media, marketing or distribution channels or agents to inform the public at large about the private placement issue. Section 42(10) imposes a penalty on the company, its directors and promoters for contravention of the Section 42.

Introduction : In a special leave petition filed regarding the rejection of a patent application for an invention which its inventor claims to be a process for improving human capabilities by integrating with artificial intelligence, Senior Advocate Swathi Sukumar was appointed as the amicus curiae in the Supreme Court of India on July 21, 2026 (Caleb Suresh Motupalli v. Controller of Patents). The application, which became known to the Controller of Patents as a device and

Introduction : A useful starting point for an inquiry is a company’s shareholder register. It is well established in the corporate and financial crime practice that legal or registered ownership frequently diverges from beneficial ownership which is the identity of a natural person who ultimately owns or controls an entity, where the legal or registered ownership is in another person’s or another entity’s name. A corporate structure can often be complicated with layers of com

Introduction : Biometric technology has moved from being experimental to actual implementations with fingerprint scanners at entrance to workplaces, facial recognition at airports and iris scans in governmental social services. The reason is simple: biometric traits are simple to implement, recognizable and difficult to fake. However, the same reasons that make biometrics appealing are the ones that turn them into a danger. Unlike passwords or smart cards, once biometric temp

Introduction : Commercial disputes are increasingly being decided by the messages exchanged on collaboration tools, the version histories of shared documents, the access logs recording who viewed or edited a file, and the audit trails of the platforms recording each administrative action. Yet the very attributes that lend these evidence value in disputes – their volume, dispersion and potential storage on servers in any jurisdiction – also render them legally precarious. This

Introduction : UI/UX is not just a design, it is a product identity. It is the most important part of a “product” in the digital economy. Why? In a fintech app, trust can be gained easily but lost at the interface as it is dependent on KYC flow, clear prompts, and predictable screens are the variables in the happening of a payment or an exit. In cases of E-commerce, UI/UX has to be clear with their screening and the designs. Whether the consumer will be stuck in a browsing lo

Introduction : The Semiconductor Integrated Circuits Layout-Design ("SICLD") Act of 2000 is a statutory legislation in India aimed at protecting the intellectual property in the design of the layout for the semiconductor chips. The SICLD Act was enacted to enable India to be in accordance with the TRIPS Agreement (Articles 35-38) that calls for the legal protection of the integrated circuit (IC) topographies. It provides the legal right of an innovator to claim the protection

Introduction : Digital platforms in e-commerce, online gaming, travel booking, and fintech regularly hold money in a manner that is not truly on behalf of the customer. A wallet balance resulting from a cancelled order, a refund held as "store credit," a stake deposited for an online contest, or a balance prepaid into the account of a travel aggregator are each, in effect, a sum of money that has been paid by the customer, and retained by the entity in anticipation of its own

Introduction : A child using a learning application, a school attendance tracker, a voice-activated toy or a social platform generates a surprisingly broad set of personal data: an identity profile, created when accessing the platform; behavioural data from each interaction with the app; educational data, including performance and areas of difficulty; voice data, if the child interacts via voice with toys or learning assistants; and location data, stored on the device the chi

Introduction : Suppose you’re a big global tech company. A small startup creates software that could undermine your entire business model in five years. They have very little revenue, even fewer employees, and offices based in a co-working space. The obvious solution is to acquire the startup before it matures into a serious competitive threat. The sparse financial statements and overall lack of assets of the startup would justify the deal flying under the radar of the compet

Introduction : This conflict is part of the conflict over the conflicting marks “MARQ” and “MARC” for electrical/electronic goods. The case was heard from the Trial Court, the Delhi High Court up to the Supreme Court. The main case before the Delhi High Court is related to the order dated 27th October 2018 passed by Additional District Judge (Patiala House Courts), New Delhi. Justice Tejas Karia heard and decided the appeal in the case of FAO-IPD 46/2021 on 10th April 2026. T