Thailand
Answer ... Both civil and criminal remedies are available in case of trademark infringement.
The penalty for trademark infringement as per Section 108 of the Trademark Act is up to four years’ imprisonment and/or a fine not exceeding THB 400,000.
The penalty for imitation of a registered trademark is up to two years’ imprisonment and/or a fine not exceeding THB 200,000.
Monetary relief is decided by specialised judges of the Intellectual Property and International Trade Court.
Injunctive relief is available in Thailand, although it is hard to obtain in practice. There must be clear and convincing evidence that:
- the party against which injunctive relief is sought has engaged in the infringing activities; and
- there will be irreparable harm if relief is not granted promptly.
Thailand
Answer ... There are no specific remedies.
Thailand
Answer ... Section 46 of the Trademark Act recognises the offence of passing-off.
Thailand
Answer ... In practice, sending a cease and desist letter or submitting a takedown notice (for online infringement) is the most efficient and cost-effective way of stopping trademark infringement in Thailand.
If the dispute cannot be resolved, the trademark owner can file a complaint with the enforcement authorities (eg, the economic police) or before the Intellectual Property and International Trade Court (IP/IT Court).
Thailand
Answer ... The only defence in the Trademark Act is the fair use defence set out in Section 47, which states as follows: “No registration under this Act shall interfere with any bona fide use by a person of his own personal name or surname or the name of his place of business or that of any of his predecessors in business or the use by any person of any bona fide description of the character or quality of his goods.”
In practice, infringers will usually try to claim that their mark is not identical or similar to the registered mark, or that the products or services associated with the mark are different.
Thailand
Answer ... Decisions of the IP/IT Court may be appealed to the Specialised Appeal Court and ultimately to the Supreme Court.