Court Orders Jaguar Land Rover To Destroy Seized BYD Files In Defender Dispute

The Hague court lifted the seizure of records from two BYD offices. JLR’s separate claims over the design of the BYD Ti 7 remain open.

Jaguar Land Rover has suffered a setback in its dispute with BYD over the Ti 7 SUV. In a preliminary ruling on 11 November 2026, the District Court of The Hague lifted an August evidence seizure and directed JLR to instruct the court-appointed custodian to destroy the seized records. JLR has 24 hours from formal service of the ruling to issue those instructions. A delay could trigger a penalty of Euro 50,000 (Rs 52 lakh) per hour, capped at Euro 500,000 (Rs 5.2 crore).

What Was Seized From BYD’s Offices?

Court-appointed bailiffs seized records from BYD’s offices in Schiedam and Hoofddorp in August after JLR obtained authorisation from a Dutch court. JLR alleges that the Ti 7 copies elements of the Land Rover Defender’s design and suspects that BYD dismantled a Defender to reverse-engineer parts of the vehicle.

The initial authorisation was granted before BYD had an opportunity to challenge it. The records included Ti 7 launch plans, technical and financial information, and material relating to the Defender. An independent custodian held the files throughout. BYD subsequently challenged the scope of the seizure, arguing that it had swept up proprietary research and development records unrelated to the dispute.

Why The Dutch Court Lifted The Seizure

The judge found that JLR could pursue its design claims without the seized files. The court also considered the records unnecessary for calculating potential damages at this stage because BYD had yet to sell the Ti 7 in the European Union. It rejected JLR’s separate demand for Euro 500,000 (Rs 5.2 crore) in penalties from BYD, provisionally finding that BYD had complied with the original seizure order.

JLR must provide BYD with independent confirmation within 24 hours after the files are destroyed. The court also barred JLR from taking further enforcement action under the original seizure authorisation, with a separate €500,000 penalty for a breach. The preliminary ruling is immediately enforceable, including if appealed.

Defender Design Claims Continue As BYD Prepares UK Launch

The November ruling dealt with the seizure of evidence. JLR is pursuing an EU design rights claim in The Hague and separate copyright and imitation claims in Rotterdam. Those proceedings will address the allegations concerning the Ti 7 itself. The Telegraph reports that JLR is seeking to block European sales of the SUV.

Meanwhile, BYD has announced UK pricing of GBP 47,995 (Rs 59.74 lakh) for the seven-seat Ti 7 Excellence AWD, with showroom arrivals scheduled for November 2026 and customer deliveries expected from January 2027. That puts it GBP 23,845 (Rs 29.68 lakh) below the Defender 110 P300e plug-in hybrid listed at GBP 71,840 (Rs 89.43 lakh) in the UK.

The Ti 7 pairs a 1.5-litre turbo petrol engine with two electric motors for a combined 300 kW (402 hp). Its 35.6 kWh Blade battery delivers a claimed WLTP electric range of 119 km, and BYD quotes a 0–100 km/h time of 4.8 seconds. The SUV has been on sale in China since September 2025 under BYD’s Fang Cheng Bao brand, where it is called the Tai 7.