Unfair Competition and False Advertising

One of the main objectives of IP rights is protection against competitors. However, not all situations can be resolved using IP legislation only. Anti-monopoly laws and advertising laws also provide reliable methods of protection for IP rights, enabling IP owners to enforce their rights against competitors who practice unfair competition or unfair/false advertising. Besides, the term ‘unfair competition’ applies to any actions taken by economic entities (groups of individuals) and aimed at benefitting their own business that are against the law or business customs, reasonableness and fairness, and have caused or may cause damages to other economic entities or have caused or may cause damage to these competitors’ business reputation. ‘Unfair advertising’ refers to any advertising that creates unfair competition, while ‘deceptive advertising’ is any advertisement that contains information not corresponding to the reality, including information about exclusive third-party IP rights.

We have vast experience in precluding various forms of unfair competition and unfair/false advertising. In particular, we have won for our clients cases where unfair competitors:

• were misleading consumers as to the nature and methods of production, quality and quantity of goods, as well as to their real producers
• incorrectly compared the goods that they produce and sold with the goods produced and sold by our clients
• advertised and sold goods bearing trademarks and trade names legally owned by our clients
• illegally used and disclosed information constituting trade secrets

In cases of violation of the anti-monopoly law and legislation on advertising, we have enforced the rights and legal interests of national as well as international clients. Also, we have participated in administrative proceedings before the Federal Anti-monopoly Service of the Russian Federation and its territorial divisions, as well as in appellate courts.