1. Identifying Intellectual Property Rights Infringement
- Comparison of Products/Services: Conduct a detailed comparison between the suspected infringing product/service and your own protected product/service.
- Determining the Extent of Infringement: Assess the type of infringing act, its scope, and the volume of infringement as stipulated by law.
2. Investigating the Infringing Product
- Collecting Evidence of Infringement: Gather as much information as possible about the infringing party and their infringing activities.
- Providing a Comprehensive Overview of the Infringement: Establish a complete picture of the infringing conduct.
- Methods: Utilize available information sources, conduct on-site investigations, and employ other legally permissible methods.
3. Infringement Assessment
- Competent Authority: Vietnam Intellectual Property Research Institute (VIPRI).
- Purpose: Obtain an independent and professional evaluation from VIPRI, which will conclude whether the act constitutes an infringement.
The assessment result is of significant importance as it will be used or submitted to law enforcement agencies in subsequent steps. Notably, under current practices, these agencies highly value and often regard this assessment as a critical reference source before deciding how to address the infringement.
4. Sending a Cease-and-Desist Letter
This action is recommended in straightforward cases, such as when the infringer is merely selling the product or using an infringing mark on their website, store, etc. It is worth noting that, in some instances, infringers may unintentionally commit violations due to a lack of understanding of intellectual property rights. In such cases, a cease-and-desist letter can be an effective, time-saving, and cost-efficient solution for the rights holder.
5. Requesting Action from Competent Authorities
This option is recommended for more complicated cases – for example: the infringers intentionally constitute the infringements; the infringers not only sell but also manufacture the infringing products, the scope of infringement is huge etc.,.
Competent authorities: Market Surveillance Department, Economic Police Department, Inspectorate of Ministry of Science and Technology etc. Based on the nature of the case, we will decide which enforcement authority is most appropriate to handle it.
The above outlines the general procedure for handling intellectual property rights infringements. Should you have any questions or need further assistance, please feel free to contact us via the details below:
- Email: info@vnna.com.vn
- Hotline: 0862 618 669 or 0865 069 288
