Anti-counterfeiting product - policing couterfeit goods.
Do you want to drive home a 'zero tolerance' message to
counterfeiters in order to maintain the prestige of your brand? If
so, you need to consider the changes to Her Majesty's Revenue &
Customs (HMRC’s) process for dealing with counterfeit seizures:
- the burden of proof now rests with the rights holder to confirm
that particular goods are counterfeit by taking legal proceedings,
which must be initiated within 10 working days of being notified of
the goods' detention. This compares to the previous process of
simply providing a witness statement
- HMRC has introduced a ‘simplified procedure’ so that if the
consignor does not oppose destruction of the detained goods within
the time limit, HMRC may treat the detained goods as abandoned for
destruction. The destruction of goods will however be at the
expense (and responsibility) of the rights holder
Recognising that this shift in policy places a significant
burden on the rights holders, we have introduced a fixed price
product to assist you in policing counterfeit goods. We will take
you through the following steps:
- assessing the counterfeit nature of goods
- writing to the consignee (with the aim of receiving consent to
destruction of the goods) and to the HMRC
- if necessary, issuing proceedings for trade mark
infringement
- applying for judgment in default or advising on how proceedings
are best resolved
This simple and cost effective product could have a significant
impact in dealing with counterfeiters and in protecting your brand
reputation.