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Depending on the acts, nature and seriousness of right infringement acts, an act of IPR infringement shall be handled by one of the IPR enforcement authorities below under administrative procedure or civil procedure or criminal procedure. IPR enforcement authorities of Vietnam include:
(1) Courts (under civil procedure and criminal procedure);
(2) Inspectorates (under administrative procedure);
(3) Market management authorities (under administrative procedure);
(4) Customs authority (under administrative procedure);
(5) Police (under administrative procedure and criminal procedure);
(6) People’s committees of various levels (under administrative procedure);
(7) Competition authority (under administrative procedure).
- Courts
Like a majority of countries in the world, Vietnamese courts have jurisdictions over civil cases involving IPR disputes or IPR infringement under the civil procedure or over IPR infringement offences under the criminal procedure.
Vietnam does not yet have IP courts to deal with IPR disputes under civil procedure. At present, IPR disputes are usually assigned to civil courts or economic courts under the provincial People’s Court for first instance hearing.
The civil court under the provincial/municipal People’s court shall hear for the first instance the non-profit disputes over IPRs (e.g. those disputes over personal rights of a work author).
The economic court under the provincial/municipal People’s court shall hear for the first instance the disputes over IPRs among organizations and individuals which are all for profit purpose (e.g. those disputes involving uses of trademarks on goods and products etc).
For a crime of IPR Infringement, it will be heard for the first instance by the district court.
- Inspectorates
Specialized inspectorates have the power to deal with IPR Infringements in their respective sector of control.
2.1 Acts of infringement of related right and copyright: shall be deal with by the specialized inspectorate of the culture, sports and tourism sector under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and its Departments of culture, sports and tourism of provinces and cities by way of administrative measures.
The Chief Inspector of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has the power to impose a fine with the maximum value of VND500,000,000, Chief Inspectors of Departments of Culture, Sports and Tourism have the power to impose a maximum fine of VND30,000,000.
2.2 IPR infringement acts relating to various industrial property subject matters (inventions, trademarks, industrial design etc): shall be deal with by the specialized inspectorate of the science and technology sector under the Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST), Department of Science and Technology (DoST) of provinces and cities by way of administrative measures (except for the industrial property infringement acts in import/export).
The Chief Inspector of MOST has the power to impose a fine with the maximum value of VND500,000,000, Chief Inspectors of DoST have the power to impose a maximum fine of VND 30,000,000.
2.3 IPR infringement acts involving rights over plant varieties: shall be deal with by the specialized inspectorate of the agriculture and rural development sector under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) and Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development under provinces and cities (DARD) by way of administrative measures.
The Chief Inspector of MARD has the power to impose a fine with the maximum value of VND30,000,000, Chief Inspectors of DARD have the power to impose a maximum fine of VND 20,000,000.
- Market management authorities
Market management authorities have the power to inspect and deal with acts of IPR infringement, and trading of IPR counterfeit goods during business and commercial activities.
The General Director of the Market Management Department has the power to impose a maximum fine of VND70,000,000, Directors of Market Management Sub-Department of provinces and cities have the power to impose a maximum fine of VND20,000,000, Heads of Market Management Teams have the power to impose a maximum fine of VND5,000,000.
- Customs authorities
The customs authority has the power to deal with IPR infringement acts during import goods. Upon a suspect of any imported goods of infringing protected IPR, the IPR holder of intellectual property might request the customs authority to stay the completion of customs procedures with regard to the relevant shipment for inspection. If the shipment is detected to contain a sign of IPR infringement, the IPR holder may request the Customs authority to impose a penalty on the organization or individual importing those infringing goods.
The Chief of Anti-Smuggling Investigation Department under Vietnam Customs Office has the power to impose a maximum fine of VND70,000,000.
- Police
The police are responsible to investigate into and prosecute against IPR infringement crimes (assigned to the economic police). Also, the police have the power to inspect and deal with acts of IPR infringement, and trading of IPR counterfeit goods during business and commercial activities under administrative procedure.
The Chief Investigation Police Department of Ministry of Public Security has the power to impose a fine with the maximum value of VND500,000,000, Director of Provincial Police Department has the power to impose a maximum fine of VND 30,000,000.
- People’s committees
People’s committees of various levels have the power to deal with IPR Infringement acts in their localities. However, in fact, the people’s committees only exercise this power when the fine level goes beyond the power of the heads of the department inspectorate, and market management sub-department, departments of customs of provinces and cities to decide and when the relevant case files are forwarded to them by those agencies together with a request for the chairman of the people’s committee to fine.
The chairmen of people’s committees of provinces and cities have the power to impose a maximum fine of VND500,000,000.
- Competition authority
Competition authority to inspect and deal with acts of unfair competition in the field of industrial property. General Director of Competition has the power to up to impose a maximum fine of VND70,000,000.
For more detailed information and timely advice, please contact us immediately:
RSOLVING – IPR RIGHTS DISPUTES – QUICKLY
PROTECTION – IPR RIGHTS – SAFELY
SUSTAINABLE BRAND PROTECTION
ELITE LAW FIRM – 255 Hoang Van Thai Str., Thanh Xuan Dist., Hanoi, Vietnam
Tel: 0243 7373 051 | Hotline/Whatapps: 0988 746 527 | Email: info@lawfirmelite.com/vi
