Unfair Competition
The law of unfair competition is mainly comprised of torts related to economic injury to business caused by a deceptive or wrongful business practice, with the exception of damages involving monopolies and antitrust legislation.
An unfair act is defined based on the context of the business, the action being examined, and the facts of the individual case.
One of most familiar example of unfair competition is trademark infringement, which involves the unauthorized use of intangible assets not protected by trademark or copyright laws. Unfair competition may also involve the following acts:
- False advertising
- Use of confidential information by former employees to solicit clients
- Trade secret theft
- Breach of restrictive covenant
- Trade libel
- Bait and switch selling tactics
- False representation of products or services
- Unauthorized substitution of one brand of goods for another
Violations of the laws of unfair competition are governed by state laws and the federal laws on trademarks, copyrights and false advertising.
The Federal Trade Commission is the main government agency tasked to protect consumers from deceptive and unfair trade practices thereby also indirectly protecting competitors (Title 16 of the Code of Federal Regulations). On the state level, the California Unfair Competition Law is the main law that protects consumers and businesses against unfair competition practices.
Business and Corporate Attorney can help you protect your business from deceptive and unfair competition practices. Call us now and get a free case evaluation.