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New Delhi, Oct 22 (IANS) The Delhi High Court recorded a settlement between Mars Incorporated and Cadbury (India) Ltd over the use of the ‘Celebration’ mark, ending a nearly 25-year-old trademark dispute between the two confectionery giants.
A single-judge bench of Justice Sanjiv Narula, while delivering the verdict on the suit, said that the decades-long competition finally ended “not in discord, but in harmony”.
“For nearly twenty-five years, the two giants of the confectionery world – Mars and Cadbury – have stood before this Court in competition over the trademark ‘Celebration’. Today, that long journey has found its conclusion. The curtains have finally been drawn, not in discord, but in harmony,” Justice Narula said.
Under the terms of the settlement, both companies agreed to withdraw their respective opposition and rectification proceedings pending before the Indian Trade Marks Registry. The Delhi High Court said the agreement, dated July 3, 2025, was found to be “valid and voluntarily executed”.
It also noted a joint goodwill initiative proposed by the two companies, in which they expressed their desire “to mark this closing with a gesture consistent with the very word over which they had long been disputing – celebration.” In a voluntary venture, Mars and Cadbury committed to distribute their confectionery products worth Rs 5 lakh to school children across Delhi.
As per the order of the Delhi High Court, the exercise will be monitored by the Directorate of Education and the Delhi State Legal Services Authority (DSLSA). “The distribution will preferably be done before the main festival, under the supervision of the Directorate of Education, Government of NCT Delhi (GNCTD), and Delhi State Legal Services Authority (DSLSA),” it said.
Justice Narula lauded the agreement, saying: “Even in highly competitive industries, corporate rivalry need not eclipse social responsibility. True celebration lies not in victory over another, but in generosity to others.” The Delhi High Court commented that the real value of the case lay not in its extensive pleadings but in “the conduct of the parties at the end of it”.
“By choosing an amicable solution, these two iconic companies, once adversaries, have come together to restore a clear understanding of the trademark over which they had long been in dispute. ‘Celebration’ now represents happiness that is shared, not divided.”
–IANS
PDS/UK