Bosch Corp v Wiedson International: Trade Mark Infringement & Account of Profits
In Bosch Corp v Wiedson International (S) Pte Ltd, the Singapore High Court addressed the taking of account of profits in two suits (S 845/2006 and S 133/2011) concerning trade mark infringement. Bosch and Denso, the plaintiffs, alleged that Wiedson, along with its managing director Yap Kim Yok and executive Gan Yeok Chuan, traded in counterfeit goods. Due to incomplete documentation, the court considered methods for computing revenue and net profit margin, ultimately extrapolating revenue from seized documents and applying a 25% net profit margin. The court ordered Wiedson to pay $275,000 to Bosch in S 845/2006 and $65,000 to Denso in S 133/2011, plus costs of $15,000 in each case. Both parties filed notices of appeal.
1. Case Overview
1.1 Court
High Court1.2 Outcome
Judgment for Plaintiff
1.3 Case Type
Intellectual Property
1.4 Judgment Type
Grounds of Decision
1.5 Jurisdiction
Singapore
1.6 Description
The High Court assessed profits owed by Wiedson for trade mark infringement, addressing revenue extrapolation and profit margin calculations due to incomplete documentation.
1.7 Decision Date
2. Parties and Outcomes
| Party Name | Role | Type | Outcome | Outcome Type | Counsels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bosch Corp | Plaintiff | Corporation | Judgment for Plaintiff | Won | |
| Wiedson International (S) Pte Ltd | Defendant | Corporation | Judgment against Defendant | Lost | |
| Yap Kim Yok | Defendant | Individual | Judgment against Defendant | Lost | |
| Gan Yeok Chuan | Defendant | Individual | Judgment against Defendant | Lost | |
| Denso | Plaintiff | Corporation | Judgment for Plaintiff | Won |
3. Judges
| Judge Name | Title | Delivered Judgment |
|---|---|---|
| Tay Yong Kwang | Judge | Yes |
4. Counsels
4. Facts
- Bosch received information that Wiedson was trading in goods infringing Bosch’s trade marks.
- A raid of Wiedson's premises by the IPRB seized goods suspected of trade mark offences.
- The seized documents represented only about 10% of Wiedson’s total sales from 2000 to 2006.
- The defendants did not sign a settlement agreement after criminal proceedings concluded.
- The defendants filed a “nil” list of documents despite court orders for disclosure.
- The court applied a 50% margin of error in the defendants’ favour due to incomplete documentation.
5. Formal Citations
- Bosch Corp v Wiedson International (S) Pte Ltd and others and another suit, Suit No 845 of 2006 (Taking of Accounts No 1 of 2014) and Suit No 133 of 2011 (Taking of Accounts No 2 of 2014), [2015] SGHC 105
- Bosch Corp (Japan) v Wiedson International (S) Pte Ltd and others and another suit, , [2013] 2 SLR 700
6. Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Infringing sales commenced | |
| Infringing sales ceased | |
| Bosch received information about Wiedson's infringing activities | |
| Bosch lodged a complaint before a magistrate | |
| Wiedson's premises were raided by the Intellectual Property Rights Branch | |
| Bosch commenced criminal proceedings and a civil action | |
| Registrar's appeals heard in Bosch Corp (Japan) v Wiedson International (S) Pte Ltd and others and another suit [2013] 2 SLR 700 | |
| Assistant registrar struck out the defendants’ defence and entered interlocutory judgment for Bosch | |
| Defendants filed notices of appeal | |
| Plaintiffs filed notices of appeal | |
| Judgment issued |
7. Legal Issues
- Trade Mark Infringement
- Outcome: The court found the defendants liable for trade mark infringement.
- Category: Substantive
- Account of Profits
- Outcome: The court assessed the profits owed by the defendants to the plaintiffs.
- Category: Procedural
- Computation of Profits in Cases of Incomplete Documentation
- Outcome: The court extrapolated revenue from seized documents and applied a net profit margin, with a margin of error in the defendant's favor.
- Category: Procedural
8. Remedies Sought
- Account of Profits
- Costs
9. Cause of Actions
- Trade Mark Infringement
10. Practice Areas
- Intellectual Property Litigation
- Commercial Litigation
11. Industries
- No industries specified
12. Cited Cases
| Case Name | Court | Affirmed | Citation | Jurisdiction | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bosch Corp (Japan) v Wiedson International (S) Pte Ltd and others and another suit | High Court | Yes | [2013] 2 SLR 700 | Singapore | Upheld the decision to strike out the defendant's defence on the basis that it was an abuse of court process. |
| Main-Line Corporate Holdings Ltd v United Overseas Bank Ltd and another (First Currency Choice Pte Ltd, third party) | High Court | Yes | [2011] SGHC 268 | Singapore | Summarized the approach of the Court in an action for trade mark infringement where an account of profits is sought. |
| Liquideng Farm Supplies Pty Ltd v Liquid Engineering 2003 Pty Ltd | Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia | Yes | [2009] FCAFC 7 | Australia | Cited for the principles that only a reasonable approximation is required in an account of profits and allowance should be given for lack of precision where the available material is incomplete. |
| Bugatti GmbH v Shine Forever Men Pty Ltd (No 2) | Federal Court of Australia | Yes | [2014] FCA 171 | Australia | Cited for accepting the applicant's extrapolation method in estimating sales where the accounting party failed to identify the total number of goods sold. |
| Vivid Entertainment LLC & Ors v Digital Sinema Australia Pty Ltd & Ors (No 3) | Federal Magistrates Court of Australia | Yes | [2007] FMCA 748 | Australia | Cited for implicitly accepting a similar method of extrapolation. |
| General Tyre & Rubber Co v Firestone Tyre & Rubber Co Ltd | N/A | Yes | [1975] 1 WLR 819 | N/A | Cited for the principle that an account of profits is essentially a judicial estimation of the available indications. |
13. Applicable Rules
| Rule Name |
|---|
| No applicable rules |
14. Applicable Statutes
| Statute Name | Jurisdiction |
|---|---|
| Trade Marks Act (Cap 332, 2005 Rev Ed) | Singapore |
15. Key Terms and Keywords
15.1 Key Terms
- Trade Mark Infringement
- Account of Profits
- Counterfeit Goods
- Extrapolation
- Net Profit Margin
- Seized Documents
- Pro Forma Invoices
- IPRB
- Infringing Sales
15.2 Keywords
- trade mark
- infringement
- account of profits
- Bosch
- Wiedson
- Singapore
- intellectual property
17. Areas of Law
| Area Name | Relevance Score |
|---|---|
| Trademarks | 90 |
| Account of Profits | 80 |
| Commercial Disputes | 70 |
| Counterfeit Goods | 60 |
| Civil Procedure | 40 |
| Company Law | 30 |
| Contract Law | 20 |
16. Subjects
- Intellectual Property
- Trade Marks
- Civil Procedure
- Accounting