As any other state, California has formulated its own law, the California Unfair Competition Law to protect the business sector and its consumer.
The California Unfair Competition Law defined this illicit performance as:
?Any unlawful business act or practice ?Unfair business act or practice ?Fraudulent business act or practice ?Unfair deceptive, untrue or misleading advertising and ?Any act prohibited by section 17500-17577.5
The definition of section 17200 of the CUCL is disjunctive. The five words that define unfair competition operate distinctively from its other. It means that an act is considered prohibited or fraudulent even if it is not unfair or unlawful.
Unlike other unfair and deceptive practices statute that requires intent as an element, section 17200 of the CUCL does not require that the defendant have intent to defraud the plaintiff.
Who may be sued under the California Unfair Competition Law?
Unlike any other statutes, the California Unfair Competition Law does not exempt specific industries. It applies to all persons. Moreover, persons in the statute refer to all natural persons, corporation, firms, partnerships, Joint Stocks Corporation, association and other organization of persons.
What constitute a business act or practice?
The California Unfair Competition Law requires that the wrongful acts that defined unfair competition must constitute a business act or practice. In addition, the act or practice has been construed to encompass most conduct. Even a single act is sufficient to allege a claim under section 17200.
What constitute unlawful business act or practice?
A business act or practice is unlawful if it violates any law. Unlawful claims includes violation of numerous laws and regulations existing at the various levels of government including, state statutes, state regulations, local ordinances, prior case law and standard of professional conduct.
How to plead an unlawful claim
For a party to successfully file a claim under section 17200 based on unlawful business act or practice it is necessary that he allege or show sufficient facts of the violation of the law. Failure of a party to show supporting evidence would affect the legality of the claim.
How to plead an unfair business practice
To successfully plead an unfair business practice it is necessary that the plaintiff must show the unfair nature of the conduct. The plaintiff may also allege that the harm caused by the conduct must outweigh any benefits that the conduct may have.
What constitute fraudulent acts?
A business act or practice is fraudulent if members of the public are likely to be deceived. Under this act, it is not necessary that the wrongful conduct involve advertising or false representation.
A claim under sec. 17200 premised on fraudulent acts does not require proof or intent, actual reliance or damages. According to a case decided by the US Supreme Court the statement need not be material to the transaction - it need not have affected the consumers purchasing decision.
How to plead a claim based on fraudulent conduct?
To plead a claim under section 17200 based on fraudulent conduct the plaintiff must assert that the consumers are likely to be deceived by the defendant conduct.
In a case recently decided by the court, California law requires a plaintiff to prove that defendants advertising claims are false and misleading.
Unfair competition is defined as any business act or practice that is considered unlawful, unfair or fraudulent that belongs to the types of business wrongs. This also includes deceptive, unfair, misleading, or untrue advertising.
Categories of Unfair Competition
Unfair competition can be narrowed down into two expansive categories:
?Unfair competition - refers to torts that are meant to confuse consumers as to the source of the product ?Unfair trade practices - includes all the other forms or activities of unfair competition.
Examples of Unfair Competition
Unfair competition is not referred to as the economic harms that involve antitrust legislation and monopolies. The elements that comprise an unfair act differ with the action that is being examined, the context of the business, and the details of the individual case. To fully understand these deceitful actions, the help of experienced attorneys are needed.
Some of the most common examples of unfair competition are the following:
?Palming off
?False advertising and promotion
?Trade dress violations
?Deceptive or misleading trade practices
?Misappropriation
?Trademark infringement
?"Bait and switch" selling tactics
?Trade libel
?False representation of services or products
?Theft of trade secrets
Palming off
Palming off goods is defined as holding out goods to the public that is coming from another source or as goods of another competitor.
False Advertising and Competition
This happens when a business creates a statement in advertising that may be either false or is possible to mislead the consumers as to the product's origin, quality, endorsement, or source.
Trade Dress Violation
A trade dress violation happens when a company copies the appearance of the competitor's product and/or packaging that the consumers experience a hard time telling the distinction.
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
Unfair or deceptive practices occur when a seller acts unfairly or deceives a consumer, whether it is intended or not.
Misappropriation
Misappropriation involves the unauthorized use of an elusive property that is not protected by copyright or trademark laws.
Trademark Infringement
This occurs when one uses a trademark without the authorization of the owner or any licensees, which is confusingly similar or identical to a trademark owned by another party. It is a violation of the exclusive rights that is attached to a trademark.
"Bait and switch"
"Bait and Switch" is a misleading sales tactic where an item is advertised in a low price to attract the consumers then convincing them to buy a more expensive item, telling them that they have an insufficient supply of the item that was advertised or by disparaging the quality of the advertised goods.
Trade Libel
Trade libel is defined as a fallacious and degrading statement of the quality of goods which results in financial damage to the owner.
False representation of services or products
False representation is defined as an incorrect or untrue representation with regards to a products or services that is made with knowledge of its inaccuracy.
Theft of Trade Secrets
Theft or violation of trade secrets occur when a trade secret, technical or commercial information that is used in a business that is not commonly known or used by other competitors, is taken without the authorization of the owner.
These unfair practices are done by some competitors to take advantage of others, thus, unfair competition arises. It is wise to seek assistance from skilled attorneys that will represent you in these unfair competition disputes.
Both Maribel Roncales & Kamille Pagibigan are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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