An Italian company imported kitchen utensils from China through the Port of Trieste. The goods bore a mark of quality of a German company. While they were going through customs for the completion of procedures, the Financial Police of Trieste ordered the seizure of fifteen hundred household products for precautionary reasons considering the affixed mark to be counterfeit, since the importing company was not authorized to its use by the German company. The company was hence charged with the crime of introduction of goods with false trademarks in the territories of the State, provided and punished by art. 474 of the Italian criminal code.
The importing company, which was using the mark while being unaware of its registration, together with the owner of the mark then formalized an agreement authorizing the former to affix the label on the imported goods.
The Public Prosecutor in Trieste then granted the request put forth by the importing company, as a result of the occurred regularization of the goods, by virtue of the afore mentioned agreement, ordered its release and its return to the rightful owner. Therefore, the subsequent regularization by way of agreement with the owner of the brand that was supposed to be counterfeit made the completion of the import operations possible and, thus, the release for consumption of the products.
(Trieste Office – Federica Fantuzzi – 0039 (0)40 7600281)
