Internationally, there are three main types of liability for trademark infringement: civil liability, administrative liability and criminal liability. There are three ways to resolve disputes arising from trademark infringement: the parties negotiate to resolve the dispute, the trademark registrant or interested parties file a lawsuit in court, or request the relevant administrative departments to handle it. Next, the editor will introduce it to you in detail.

1. The constitution of trademark infringement

From the specific provisions of my country’s Trademark Law, the constitution of trademark infringement is based on whether there is an infringement fact, not It is conditional on whether the infringer is subjectively at fault. But fault is often also a factor considered when determining infringement. Generally speaking, the main elements of an infringement act are: The infringed party owns the legally protected trademark rights; The infringer has illegally infringed the infringed party's legally protected trademark rights; The infringer has subjective fault, that is, intentional or negligent.

2. Manifestations of trademark infringement

According to Article 52 of my country’s current Trademark Law, any of the following behaviors is a trademark infringement. Unauthorized use. Using a trademark that is identical or similar to a registered trademark on the same or similar goods without the permission of the trademark registrant. The main manifestation is that the use of other people's registered trademarks on the goods produced or sold by oneself causes confusion about the source of the goods, damages the reputation of the registered trademark, and encroaches on part of the market and the benefits that should belong to the owner of the registered trademark. At the same time, it also Deceived consumers. Selling goods that infringe the exclusive rights of registered trademarks. Knowingly selling goods with counterfeit registered trademarks, the "sales" referred to here include inquiry, contract signing, purchase and warehousing, transportation, exhibition promotion, wholesale and retail and other related sales activities. Counterfeiting or making without authorization the registered trademark signs of others or selling forged or making without authorization the registered trademark signs of others. Counterfeiting or unauthorized manufacture or sale of paper, stickers, packaging, etc. with registered trademarks. Without the consent of the trademark registrant, the registered trademark is changed and the goods with the changed trademark are put on the market again. This behavior is called trademark "reverse counterfeiting". Generally speaking, it refers to the behavior of the owner of a famous brand trademark purchasing non-famous brand trademark goods at a low price, tearing off the non-famous brand trademark and replacing it with his own famous brand trademark, and then putting it on the market to sell it at a high price. Acts that cause other damage to the exclusive right to use registered trademarks of others. According to Article 50 of the "Regulations on the Implementation of the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China", the main manifestations of this kind of infringement are: using a mark that is identical or similar to another person's registered trademark as a trade name on the same or similar goods, Behavior that misleads the public; behavior that intentionally provides convenient conditions for warehousing, transportation, mailing, hiding, etc. to infringe on the exclusive rights of others’ trademarks.

3. Responsibility for trademark infringement

Internationally, there are three main types of liability for trademark infringement: civil liability, administrative liability and criminal liability. Taking the relevant regulations of our country as an example, the three types of responsibilities are as follows.

1) Civil liability

Civil liability for trademark rights refers to the liability that an infringer shall bear to stop the infringement, eliminate obstruction and cause damage to the trademark owner due to infringement of the exclusive right to use a registered trademark. Liability for compensation for losses, etc. my country’s Trademark Law stipulates the following points regarding liability for infringement of trademark exclusive rights. Amount of compensation. Article 56, paragraph 1, of my country's Trademark Law stipulates that the amount of compensation for infringement of the exclusive right to use a trademark shall be the benefits gained by the infringer due to the infringement during the infringement period, or the losses suffered by the infringed party during the infringement period, including the infringement Reasonable expenses incurred to stop the infringement. Stopping an immediate infringement means taking action to stop an infringement that is being carried out but the damage has not yet appeared or is about to be carried out. Stopping imminent infringement will help protect the legitimate rights and interests of trademark owners to the maximum extent and minimize the damage caused by infringements that have been or are about to be committed. Evidence preservation. Article 58 of the Trademark Law stipulates that in order to stop infringement, if the evidence may be lost or difficult to obtain in the future, the trademark registrant or interested party may apply to the People's Court for evidence preservation before filing a lawsuit.

After accepting the application, the People's Court must make a ruling within 48 hours; if it decides to take preservation measures, the implementation shall begin immediately.

2) Administrative liability

Trademark administrative liability refers to the punitive measures taken by the competent authorities for illegal acts that infringe on the exclusive right to use registered trademarks. According to Article 53 of my country’s Trademark Law, the industrial and commercial administration department may take the following measures for infringement of the exclusive right to use a trademark: order the infringing act to cease immediately; confiscate and destroy the infringing goods and those specifically used to manufacture infringing goods, counterfeit goods Tools for registering trademarks; impose fines. The industrial and commercial administrative organs may impose a fine of less than 50% of the illegal turnover or more than 5 times of the profits obtained from infringement according to the seriousness of the case. For the directly responsible person of the unit that infringes the exclusive right to use a registered trademark, the industrial and commercial administration The agency may impose a fine of up to 10,000 yuan based on the circumstances.

3) Criminal liability

Trademark criminal liability refers to the serious circumstances or consequences of the perpetrator's infringement, which constitutes a criminal act stipulated in the criminal law, and therefore is subject to criminal sanctions. Article 59 of my country’s Trademark Law stipulates: If the use of a trademark identical to the registered trademark on the same product without the permission of the trademark registrant constitutes a crime, in addition to compensating the losses of the infringed party, criminal liability shall be pursued in accordance with the law. If a person forges or manufactures other people's registered trademarks without authorization or sells forged or unauthorized registered trademarks, which constitutes a crime, in addition to compensating the losses of the infringed party, criminal liability shall be pursued in accordance with the law. Anyone who knowingly sells goods that are counterfeit registered trademarks constitutes a crime. In addition to compensating the losses of the infringed party, he will also be held criminally responsible in accordance with the law. ?

4. Methods for resolving trademark infringement disputes

There are three ways to resolve disputes arising from trademark infringement: the parties negotiate to resolve it, and the trademark registrant or interested party files a lawsuit with the court. Litigation, or requesting the relevant administrative departments to handle it. In my country, the industrial and commercial administrative departments have the right to identify infringements, take law enforcement measures to order the infringement to cease, confiscate and destroy infringing goods and tools specifically used to manufacture infringing goods and counterfeit registered trademarks, and may impose fines. If the party concerned is dissatisfied with the administrative decision ordering it to stop infringement, it may file an administrative lawsuit in accordance with the law; if the infringer does not sue or perform the infringement upon expiration of the time limit, the industrial and commercial administrative department may apply to the People's Court for compulsory enforcement. Resolving trademark infringement disputes through administrative agencies is relatively simple in terms of procedures and effective in terms of stopping infringement. However, it is impossible for the infringed party to obtain civil compensation through this kind of administrative investigation. The administrative department can only mediate on civil compensation issues during the investigation and handling process. If the two parties cannot reach an agreement and the infringed party still hopes to obtain civil compensation, they can only file a lawsuit in the People's Court. When infringement occurs, the infringed party can also directly file an infringement lawsuit with the People's Court. Litigation is the final solution. Even if the case is handled by the industrial and commercial administrative authorities, the parties concerned who are dissatisfied can still file a lawsuit in the People's Court and submit various civil relief requests through judicial channels.