Please help me respond to trademark violation charges.

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I was being audited for tax, and I was notified that it's being converted to a tax crime investigation... I'm not even sure exactly what a tax crime investigation is. What should I do? If there's a tax specialist attorney, I'd like help.

trademark violation

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作者: 김국일

Hello. I am a copyright specialist attorney at Daeryun Law Firm.

The matter you inquired about is a situation where investigation may proceed under suspicion of trademark infringement under the Trademark Act.

Trademark infringement refers to cases where a person other than the trademark owner or exclusive licensee uses, without proper authority, a mark identical or similar to another's registered trademark on designated goods or similar goods.

At this time, registration status, scope of designated goods, and intent of the use act become key issues.

In your case, the manufacture and sale of bread machines bearing the trademark at the request of an acquaintance was the start of the problem. Initially, it can be viewed as having received the trademark holder's implicit permission.

In particular, the fact that manufacturing was stopped after non-payment can support that there was no intent to infringe.

In such cases, the investigative agency may not view it the same as simple unauthorized use, but may judge it as a dispute arising from a transactional relationship.

If trademark violation charges are recognized, legally, imprisonment of up to 7 years or a fine of up to 100 million won may be imposed.

However, since civil damages claims may proceed in parallel with criminal procedures, both procedures must be considered together.

To respond, you must secure materials proving permission or consent for use, such as text messages, emails, and transaction records exchanged with the acquaintance.

If the manufacture and sale was at a simple agency level rather than for profit purposes, it is also important to specifically explain this.

If possible, settling with the complainant and recovering damages will greatly help in lowering the level of punishment.

Above all, in trademark violation cases, statements and evidence at the early investigation stage often determine the direction of the case.

Therefore, it is safer to retain an attorney before police investigation to submit an opinion and ensure that no unfavorable statements remain during the investigation process.

In your case, you can sufficiently expect leniency or non-referral, so we recommend thoroughly preparing for the initial response.