Last year, on a typical day the U.S.
Customs and Border Protections (CBP) seized about $3.8 million worth of products because of Intellectual Property
Rights (IPR) Violations. CBP
reported that the total
number of IPR seizures has increased nine (9) percent since last year, from 28,865
in 2015 to 31,560 in 2016. With the manufacturer’s suggested retail price
(MSRP) exceeding $1.3 trillion.
What is Causing the
Increase in Seizures?
· Recordation of Trademark And Copyright With The CBP
o
In addition to
registration of IPR with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO for
trademarks), or the U.S. Copyright Office (for copyrights), owners can record
said trademark or copyright with CBP. This additional step grants CBP
additional enforcement power in both seizing counterfeit and piratical goods as
well as thereafter issuing penalties for the MSRP value of the goods. In previous
blog posts, we explained benefits
of taking the extra step of recording your registered trademark or copyright
with CBP, and CBP’s additional enforcement powers as a result of the recordations.
·
Government
Enforcement
o
Products that infringe
U.S. trademarks and copyrights threaten the health and safety of American
consumers and pose risks to our economy and our national security. CBP takes
IPR violations very serious, and in 2016, Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE) and Homeland Security Investigations (HIS) workforce, made 451 arrests, “obtained
304 indictments, and received 272 convictions related to intellectual property
crimes.”
·
More Than the
Product.
o
IPR violations are not
limited to the product itself, if any component of the product violates
existing IPR then the whole product will be seized. A seizure of over 200
hoverboards at PortMiami was highlighted in this Miami Herald article. In this case, the LG batteries were allegedly counterfeit. For
more on hoverboards read our previous article. If your
goods are seized, contact Diaz Trade Law to learn how we can assist you, as we have successfully
helped numerous clients with CBP seizure cases.
How to Avoid Becoming
a Statistic?
· Know your
product!
· Awareness of how your product is made, and what it consists of,
is very important in avoiding violations. However, if you have a more
complicated supply chain and don’t purchase goods directly from the
manufacturer. Often times, you may not know who made what portion of the
merchandise. This is very troublesome, especially if your products come from
the China region. In 2016, almost
88 percent of all the seizures made by CBP for IPR violations were from China
and Hong Kong.
· Pre-Compliance!
· Pre-compliance is an excellent opportunity to mitigate and avoid
any errors before your products get CBP attention. For more on pre-compliance
you can visit this article, or
check I WANT TO ENSURE I DON’T HAVE A PROBLEM BEFORE
I START IMPORTING, CAN YOU HELP ME? on
our official YouTube page.
Dealing with a
Seizure Case?
If your goods are
seized, you will have to deal with a complicated seizure process (discussed
more here).
The link has a picture of the process – doesn’t it look intense? That’s because
it is. You need an expert that understands it and will fight for you correctly.
Depending on the case and your specific facts your attorney may recommend
filing a Petition or a claim and cost bond. Filing a Petition gives you a few
bites of the apple (if you lose, you can file a Supplemental Petition, and
thereafter, still file a claim and cost bond). Every case is different and must
be evaluated on its own merit.
At Diaz
Trade Law we have a TOP 10 TIPS WHEN IMPORTING cheat sheet you can download for FREE. The Top 10 Tips discusses
the importance of IPR compliance, and knowing who you are doing business with,
as well as additional Customs requirements importers must be aware of. Diaz
Trade Law can assist if you are dealing with a seizure by CBP – or if you want
to avoid them with a robust pre-compliance program. Contact us today at info@diaztradelaw.com.
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