The acts of correction on expiry date of label of goods

BACKGROUND

The suspected goods were dairy products imported from Spain and still within the expiry date of the manufacturer’s warranty according to the relevant documents and the actual test results of the competent authorities.

As an act of violation has stipulated in the content of two separate Decrees, the case was expected to draw a larger number of “friend-of-court briefs”. On April 28, 2014, upon a request from Bac Giang Market Management Department (MMD) for obtaining an expert opinion, Pham & Associates had the views as follows (*).

ANALYSES & COMMENTS

1. The legislation concerned

1.1 Decree No. 185/2013/ND-CP dated 11/15/2013 of the Government on sanctioning of administrative violations in commercial activities, production and trade counterfeit and prohibited goods, protection of consumers’ rights.

“Article 21. Violation on trade out of date goods, unknown origin goods and other violations

b) Replacing, changing labels, re-packaging label of goods or erasing, correcting expiry date on the label of goods for purpose of extending the expiry date of goods”.

Comments

The title of Article 21 of Decree 185/2013 specifies the objects of violation are out of date goods, unknown origin goods and other violations. Thus, the object applied to Article 21 is the out of date goods.

1.2 Decree No. 80/2013/ND-CP dated 19/07/2013 of the Government on sanctioning of administrative violations in the field of standards, metrology and quality of goods.

"Article 26 . Violation on compulsory contents on the label or contents required to be shown on the label according to the nature of goods

...The acts of trading goods with the label (including the original label or auxiliary label of imported goods) being erased, corrected so that falsified the information of goods”.

Comments

The title of Article 26 of Decree 80/2013 is consistent with the content of Article 26 "imported goods being erased, corrected so that falsified the information of goods”. Thus, the object in question was dairy products imported from Spain within the expiry date of the manufacturer’s warranty, however, which were corrected the expiary date aiming to create goodwill. 

2. The objects and the acts of administrative violation

The object in question was dairy products imported from Spain within the expiry date of the manufacturer’s warranty. The acts of violation were correction of the expiry date of goods while it was within the expiry date of the manufacturer’s warranty aiming to create goodwill.

CONCLUSION

In light of the above, the MMD had grounds to impose sanctions on the acts fore-mentioned according to Decree 80/2013.

(*) Nearly 25 years acted on behalf of many brands all over the world such as Honda, Pfizer, Adidas, Shiseido, Bosch ect in the field of enforcement of intellectual property rights in Vietnam, Pham & Associates has become as “friend of court” for the competent authorities such as the Courts, the MMDs, the Economic Polices, the Inspector.

Pham & Associates