Sangeetha Punniyamoorthy

Partner
Co-Chair, Canadian Intellectual Property and Technology Group
Trademark Agent
'Exceptional,' '[L]eading the next generation of practitioners with her innovative and creative approach.'
— World Trademark Review 1000
Toronto

About

Sangeetha Punniyamoorthy is an intellectual property strategist and litigator. She has two decades of experience litigating complex patent, trademark and copyright matters using a creative approach to achieve business objectives. She also provides strategic advice in the procurement and enforcement of intellectual property (IP) rights in various industries, with a focus on life sciences.

Described as a "sharp tactician lauded for her detailed analysis, strategic mindset and unrivalled expertise," Sangeetha has appeared as counsel in two appeals before the Supreme Court of Canada, as well as in matters before the Federal Court, the Federal Court of Appeal, and the Ontario Court, as well as the Trademarks Opposition Board and the Competition Tribunal. Sangeetha has experience in all aspects of intellectual property litigation, ranging from pre-litigation opinions to appeals. In addition, she regularly works with counsel in various jurisdictions to co-ordinate the Canadian part of multi-jurisdictional lawsuits. She also has an active prosecution and opposition practice focused on global brand portfolios.

Sangeetha is an active speaker, a published author, and an involved member of the intellectual property community. She has been Chair of the Ontario Bar Association IP-IT Section, as well as the Copyright Committee of the Intellectual Property Institute of Canada. She is a Global Fellow of the Federal Circuit Bar Association and a Fellow of the Intellectual Property Institute of Canada and is involved in committees of the IP section of the Canadian Bar Association. 

Prior to obtaining her J.D. from Osgoode Hall Law School, Sangeetha obtained a B.Sc. in Molecular Biology from the University of Toronto and did research in psychosomatic medicine at the Toronto General Hospital.

Areas of FocusIntellectual PropertyLitigation, Arbitration and InvestigationsTrademark and Copyright LitigationPatent LitigationMedia, Sport and EntertainmentLife Sciences
Bar admissionsOntario, 2004

EXPERIENCE

  • BuzzBallz LLC v. Endless Summer Distillery et al. (BC Supreme Court File. VLC-S-S-231462): Representing a leading innovator of mixed cocktail beverages in asserting trademark and related rights in an infringement action
  • Cow Welfare A/S v. iBarn Incorporated (Federal Court File T-457-20): Representing innovator of barn equipment in a patent infringement dispute relating to free stall and feeding fence products
  • Represented Aphria Inc. (TSX: APHA and NASDAQ: APHA) in its reverse takeover of Tilray, Inc. (NASDAQ: TLRY)
  • Robertson v. Thomson Corp. (SCC File No. 30644/C38148): Representing the plaintiffs in this class action lawsuit at the Supreme Court of Canada in a successful appeal relating to substantive issues of copyright in respect of articles written by freelance authors and reproduced by newspaper publishers in electronic form
  • Imdex v. Globaltech (Federal Court File Nos. T-410-23 and T-903-23): Representing a global mining technology leader in multiple patent infringement and invalidity actions
  • Intercontinental Exchange Inc.: Representing a multinational financial services company and operator of global financial exchanges in various oppositions and disputes
  • T. Rowe Price Group Inc. v. Glidepath Technologies (Federal Court File No. T-2144-23): Representing a global investment management firm in a successful appeal from the Trademarks Opposition Board
  • Cognosphere PTE Ltd. v. Joaquin Soriano (Federal Court File No. T-2533-23): Representing a global video game publisher in obtaining judgment against cheat software with respect to copyrights and technological protection measures
  • Edibles Arrangements LLC v. Vaav et al. (Federal Court File No. T-218-18): Representing a leading franchisor in an industrial design and trademark infringement suit against an online infringer, and successful obtaining default judgment, damages, and transfer of the domain names at issue
  • Stargrove Entertainment Inc. v. Universal Music Canada Inc. et al. (Competition Tribunal CT-2015-09): Representing the applicant in a successful application for leave before the Competition Tribunal relating to the refusal of mechanical copyright licenses
  • Microbix Biosystems ats Zeptometrix (Federal Court File No. T-1672-16): Representing Microbix, an innovator of biological products and technologies, in a patent infringement action related to inactivated microorganisms for use as molecular diagnostics
  • BMW Canada Inc. v. Nissan Canada Inc. (Federal Court File No. T-1395-05): Representing BMW AG and BMW Canada Inc. in a trademark infringement action relating to the trademark M in association with luxury performance vehicles
  • SOCAN v. Bell Canada et al. (SCC File No. 33800): Representing two interveners (CanLII and Federation of Law Societies of Canada) before the Supreme Court of Canada in successfully advocating for a large and liberal interpretation of research and the analysis of the purpose of fair dealing from the perspective of the ultimate user
  • GlaxoSmithKline SA v. Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics Inc. (Federal Court File No. T-2113-06): Representing Novartis Vaccines in a patent impeachment action relating to their patent on adjuvant compositions and related vaccines
  • Voltige Inc. v. Cirque X Inc. (Federal Court File No. T-830-06): Successfully defending a motion for an interlocutory injunction based on the trademark infringement allegations relating to use of AVAIA mark in association with horse shows
  • Omniglass Ltd. v. Wojick et al. (Ont. Sup. Ct): Representing Omniglass in a trade secret lawsuit relating to pultrusion technology
  • Creative Matters Inc. v. Korhani of Canada Inc. (Federal Court File No. T-726-11): Representing Creative Matters, the copyright owner and a leading Canadian carpet designer, in an infringement and moral rights action relating to carpet designs
  • Diligent Corporation v. Dilitrust SAS et al. (Federal Court File No. T-1775-18): Representing an international software-as-a-service company in a trademark dispute in Canada, in conjunction with multi-jurisdictional litigation
  • 3Genius v. Locationary Inc. et al.  (Ont. Sup. Ct File No. CV-14-497239): Successfully representing the defendants in a dispute relating to ownership of software and a motion to compel millions of dollars of holdback funds into Court
  • Richter Gedeon Vegyeszeti Gyar RT (Ont. Sup. Ct. File no. CV-312174; Federal Court File No. T-2520-93): Representing the Hungarian pharmaceutical company in a patent infringement action and a tort action against Apotex Inc.
Languages
  • English

Awards

Chambers Canada

  • Intellectual Property: Litigation, (2024 – 2026)

Chambers Global

  • Intellectual Property: Litigation, (2024 – 2025)

The Legal 500 Canada

  • Leading Partner, Intellectual Property, (2022 – 2026)
Additional Recognitions
  • Recognized, WTR 1000, (2026)
  • Recognized, Toronto Intellectual Property Law, Best Lawyers in Canada, (2019 – 2026)
  • Listed, Lexpert Special Edition: Health Sciences, (2024 – 2025)
  • Intellectual Property, Lexpert® ALM 500 Directory, (2024)
  • Top 100 Influential Women Leaders in IP Law: Champions of Leadership, Innovation, and Global Influence, (2026)
  • Shortlisted, Practitioner of the Year, Trademark Disputes, Managing IP, (2024)
  • St. Mike's Trailblazer Award, St. Michael's College, University of Toronto, (2023)
  • Intellectual Property, The Legal 500 Canada, (2018 – 2019, 2021 – 2025)
  • Managing IP's Top 250 Women in IP, (2022 – 2024)
  • Trademark Star, Managing IP, IP Stars, (2020 – 2022, 2024 – 2025)
  • Expert Guides: Guide to the World's Leading Women in Business Law, (2019 – 2021)
  • Female Trailblazer Excellence Award Recipient, Canadian Law Awards, (2021)
  • Life Sciences Star in Canada, LMG Life Sciences Directory, (2017, 2019 – 2021, 2023)
  • Patent and Trademark Leader, World Intellectual Property Review, (2017 – 2023)
  • Global Fellow, Federal Circuit Bar Association, (2019 – 2020)
  • World Trademark Review, Leading Trademark Professional, WTR 1000, (2017 – 2022, 2024 – 2026)
  • Litigation: Intellectual Property, Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory, (2020 – 2025)
  • Intellectual Property, Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory, (2024 – 2025)
  • Listed, Lexpert Special Edition: Technology, (2024 – 2025)
  • Lawyers to Watch, Litigation: Intellectual Property, ;Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory, (2017, 2019, 2020)
  • Leading Lawyers Under 40 in Canada, Lexpert Rising Stars, (2018)
  • Expert Guides – Trade Mark, (2018)
  • South Asian Bar Association Legal Excellence Award, (2017)
  • Litigation Lawyers to Watch, Lexpert Guide to the Leading US/Canada Cross-Border Litigation Lawyers in Canada, (2017)
Education
  • J.D., Osgoode Hall Law School, 2003

  • B.Sc., University of Toronto, 2000

Publications

  • Co-author, "Intellectual Property in an AI World," Thomson Reuters Legal Update, May 25, 2023
  • Contributor, "Trade Marks 2023 – Canada," chapter of Chambers Global Practice Guides, (2022 – 2023)
  • Co-author, "Law and Practice" (Canada Section), Chambers Trade Marks Global Practice Guide, (2022)
  • Co-author, "International Copyright Law: A Practical Global Guide, Second Edition," Globe Law and Business, February 2022
  • Co-author, "Why you shouldn't overlook Canadian IP litigation," Life Sciences Intellectual Property Review, October 2, 2017
  • Co-author, "Canadian Supreme Court upholds global injunction against Google," Leading Internet Case Law, August 4, 2017
  • Co-author, "Trader v. CarGurus," Leading Internet Case Law, June 27, 2017
  • Co-author, Canadian Marketing Law Handbook, Second Edition, Carswell
  • Co-author, Intellectual Property chapter, Bullen & Leake & Jacob's Canadian Precedents of Pleadings, Carswell
  • Co-author, "Interlocutory injunction for copyright infringement by pre-loaded TV set-top boxes," E-Commerce Law Reports, Volume 16 Issue 04
  • Co-author, "Consumer seeks class action over Viagra patent," The Lawyers Weekly, May 2016
  • Co-author, "The Supreme Court affirms the principle of technological neutrality in copyright law," Lexology, March 2016
  • Co-author, "Branding of Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices: What you need to know about the latest developments in Canada," LawyerIssue, July 2015
  • Co-author, "Red Label Vacations Inc. (Redtag.ca) v. 411 Travel Buys Limited," e-commerce Law Reports, Volume 15 Issue 2, March/April 2015

Seminars

  • Speaker, "Infringement and Defenses to Infringement," 2025 IPIC-McGill University Copyright Course, July 21, 2025
  • Speaker, "Foundations of Copyright: Infringement," 2024 IPIC-McGill Copyright Master Class, July 22, 2024
  • Speaker, "Best Practices in Trademark Oppositions & Section 45 Proceedings," Intellectual Property Institute of Canada, May 14, 2024
  • Panelist, "Knowledge exchange – Enabling growth through sponsorship and mentoring," Women in Law Summit, Canadian Lawyer, April 17, 2024
  • Speaker, "Can We 'Have it All'?" 4th Annual Women Lawyers' Symposium, South Asian Bar Association of Toronto, March 2, 2024
  • Speaker, "Breaking Down the Year's Most Important IP Court Decisions," Intellectual Property Institute of Canada, October 11-13, 2023
  • Speaker, "Trademark Case Law Series: Infringement," Intellectual Property Institute of Canada, March 23, 2023
  • Speaker, Toast to Success Conference, September 18, 2022
  • Speaker, "Trademark Case Law Series: Infringement," Intellectual Property Institute of Canada, April 19, 2022
  • Guest lecturer, Copyright seminar, University of Ottawa, March 2021
  • Speaker, "So Your Client Is Alleged To Have Infringed Someone's Copyright: What Might It Cost Them? " Copyright Webinar, Intellectual Property Institute of Canada, October 5, 2021
  • Presenter, "Intellectual Property: What Business Lawyers Need to Know," 11th Business Law Summit, Law Society of Ontario, May 17, 2021
  • Speaker, "Trial Advocacy," Advocacy Webinar Series, South Asian Bar Association, May 5, 2021
  • Program Chair, "Recreational Cannabis: Key Intellectual Property and Advertising Issues," Ontario Bar Association, May 19, 2021
  • Speaker, "Can't We All Just Get Along? Consents and Coexistence Agreements in Canada and the US," Intellectual Property Institute of Canada, February 26, 2021 
  • Speaker, "Key IP Issues and Trends for In-house Counsel," OBA Canadian Corporate Counsel Association, November 25, 2020
  • Speaker, "Trial Advocacy," Advocacy Seminar, South Asian Bar Association, June 9, 2020
  • Speaker, "Trademarks Update," 24th Intellectual Property Law: The Year in Review, Law Society of Ontario, January 16, 2020
  • Co-speaker, "Top IP Law Decisions: Year in Review in Canadian Jurisprudence," IP Beyond Borders: Canada Coming of Age in a Global Economy, IPIC Annual Conference, September 27, 2019
  • Speaker, "Ethical Dilemmas in IP," 23rd Intellectual Property Law: The Year in Review, Law Society of Ontario, January 17, 2019
  • Moderator, Global Series 2018, Federal Circuit Bar Association, October 10-12, 2018
  • Speaker, "Dealing with Domain Names: Critical Advice and Essential Updates," Ontario Bar Association, March 26, 2018
  • Speaker, Litigation Panel at the 14th Annual Asian Canadian Law Students Conference, Ontario Bar Association, March 3, 2018
  • Co-chair, "Driving Innovation: The Interface Between Competition and Intellectual Property Law," Ontario Bar Association, November 22, 2017
  • Co-chair, "Impacts of recent international treaties on intellectual property law," Ontario Bar Association, April 5, 2017
  • Co-presenter, "Are you protecting your intellectual property?" Toronto Public Library - Small Business Network, March 29, 2017
  • Keynote Speaker, "Beyond the B.Sc. Conference," Ryerson University, Toronto, Jan 21, 2017
  • "Your First Civil Appeal," Ontario Bar Association, Toronto, October 17, 2016
  • "Intellectual Property and the Internet: Google v. Equustek," Ontario Bar Association, Toronto, June 2016
  • "Women in IP: Have issues evolved, are they resolved?" Intellectual Property Institute of Canada, Ottawa, January 2016
  • "Intellectual property remedies - What do you need to know?" Ontario Bar Association, Toronto, December 2015
  • "Copyright and Trademark remedies and recent changes in Canadian Practice," 89th Annual Intellectual Property Institute of Canada Conference, Banff, October 2015
  • "Trademarks Virtual Roundtable," CorporateLiveWire, July 2015

Media Mentions

  • Quoted, "Navigating deepfake risks: age old problems, brand new tech," World Trademark Review, Q1, 2024
  • Quoted, "Creativity in the age of AI," The Canadian Bar Association National, August 6, 2021
  • Quoted, "IP lawyers applaud launch of Ontario's intellectual property action plan," The Lawyer's Daily, July 22, 2020
  • Quoted, "Copyright board overdue for review, say lawyers," Law Times, December 12, 2016
  • Mentioned, "Sony, Universal Curbing Competition, Budget CD Maker Says," Law360, September 2015
  • Quoted, "Stung by CBC, Lost in Court," Blacklocks Reporter, May 4, 2015
  • Quoted, "Fair Dealing Evolves," Law Times, February 2, 2015

Community Involvement

  • Organizing Committee and Past Chair, Harold G. Fox IP Moot
  • Board Member, Osgoode Hall Law School Alumni Association
  • Advisory Board, Practical Law – Corporate and Commercial Transactions, Thomson Reuters
  • Advisory Board, Canadian Tamil Professionals Association
  • Director, National Inventors Hall of Fame Canada, (2019 – 2021)
  • Director, Girls Inc. of York Region, (2011 – 2016)

Memberships And Affiliations

  • Member, Federal Circuit Bar Association
  • Member, ChIPs
  • Past Chair, Information Technology and Intellectual Property Law Section Executive, Ontario Bar Association
  • Past Chair, Copyright Policy Committee, Intellectual Property Institute of Canada (IPIC)
  • Fellow, Intellectual Property Institute of Canada
  • Member, International Trademarks Association (Canada Amicus Committee)
  • Member, American Bar Association
  • Intellectual Property Executive (Ontario Representative), Canadian Bar Association
  • Member, Pharmaceutical Trademark Group (PTMG)
  • Editorial Board Member, Intellectual Property Journal, Federated Press, (2008 – 2015)

My latest insights

Publication

Not a prank – How April 1 changes to trademark proceedings in Canada will impact your IP...

26 March 2025 .13 minute read

News

DLA Piper secures infringement judgment for Genshin Impact and HoYoverse

5 December 2024 .2 minute read

Publication

Counterfeit goods in Canada – How to leverage the Request for Assistance program

11 September 2024 .6 minute read

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Phone

1 416 862 3366
(Work, Toronto)