Unfair competition & Trade secrets

At HOYNG ROKH MONEGIER, we have the requisite knowledge and experience to ensure the optimal protection of our clients' interests when faced with copycat products, misleading advertising or the misuse or misappropriation of confidential information or trade secrets.

Although free competition is the default rule in Europe, companies must still abide by statutory provisions intended to ensure fair trade practices.

National rules to defend against and enforce claims of unfair competition differ from country to country, both within Europe and worldwide. HOYNG ROKH MONEGIER helps clients make sense of the applicable rules and determine the best strategy, prior to the launch of a product or in the context of litigation, thanks in no small part to our familiarity with the interface of medical, regulatory, food and other sector-specific legislation with unfair competition law.

National legislation on trade secrets was recently harmonised in the EU by means of the Trade Secrets Directive. As HOYNG ROKH MONEGIER has offices in most major European countries, we are ideally positioned to advise on the protection of confidential information and trade secrets against misuse or misappropriation in the EU. Our trade secrets team is skilled at developing effective enforcement and protection strategies for the full range of issues in this field, such as employee theft, computer fraud and breaches of confidentiality agreements.

REPRESENTATIVE WORK
- Representing a specialty chemicals company in a dispute with a former employee relating to further use of the company’s proprietary know-how for the design of an extraction column.
- Ensuring protection against copycats and competitors for the eye-catching design of a popular cosmetics product, inter alia by way of unfair competition law, from market launch to enforcement, thereby contributing substantially to the success of the product and helping to preserve its uniqueness on the market.
- Providing advice and assistance in a large number of unfair competition proceedings relating to medical devices.
- Enforcing unfair competition claims relating to a pharmaceutical product design in preliminary injunction proceedings and proceedings on the merits before various courts, in the context of pan-European litigation.
- Leading group-wide representation in unfair competition matters, pertaining for example to the regulation of cosmetics or the advertising of medical devices, including a large number of proceedings on the merits and for injunctive relief relating to disputes with competitors in the dental and haircare sectors.
- Advising on the protection of trade secrets related to a business model for the acquisition of cell lines and antibodies.
- Advising a long-standing client in connection with product launches, advertising materials and claims, included aspects of food law.
- Leading representation in unfair competition and trademark matters, e.g. extensive proceedings against a well-known company relating to the use of a designation for new TV technology and various judicial and administrative proceedings related to the use of a designation for smart objects.
- Providing extensive and continuous competition law advice to a sweets company in relation to the launch and distribution of a new confectionary product and worldwide legal coordination of the product launch.
- Providing continuous advice on aspects of trade mark, design and unfair competition law in the field of lighting products, particularly in connection with product launches, advertising and claims against copycats.