Legal Advice From One Of the Top Criminal Law Firms in Singapore

PART 1 – Counterfeit goods

Perhaps your New Year’s resolution in 2016 was to be kind and helpful to others. But be warned, don’t let that get you into trouble with the law. Chua was such a victim. He owned a small retail shop, and rented some storage space to store his goods. He met Beng, who claimed to have had a bad turn of luck, saying that he had been kicked out of his shop by his landlord. As such, Beng desperately needed space to store his wares temporarily, or they would be disposed of. Chua’s heart softened and he agreed to take a few boxes of Beng’s goods.

Beng told Chua that the boxes contained electronic accessories like chargers and handphone batteries. Chua glanced at the goods, and noticed that the packaging seemed unprofessionally done, with a dubious looking “Samsung” trademark attached. He saw a price tag and noticed that they were significantly cheaper than usual. Chua thought it would be rude to pry and was reluctant to enquire further.

Later, Beng told Chua that he had found a buyer for his boxes of goods. He told Chua to help him carry out the transaction. In return, Beng would pay Chua some commission. At this point, a niggling suspicion got the better of Chua, and he decided to seek some legal advice from one the top criminal lawyers in Singapore. He considered the leading law firms in Singapore, and decided on a criminal lawyer, whose firm had a generous policy of providing free first consultations.

He was advised that the goods may be counterfeit ones, where the “Samsung” trade mark had been falsely applied to them. Had Chua agreed to transact for Beng, he would have committed a crime and be prosecuted by the State under Section 49 (c) of the Trade Marks Act, for being in possession of these goods for the purpose of trade. He was liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $10, 000 for each good, or to imprisonment for up to five years, or both. Alternatively, if Samsung somehow catches wind of this, Samsung may lodge civil proceedings against Chua. Either way, he would have needed a

litigation lawyer to represent him in court and get him out of trouble.

PART 2 – What should you do if you suspect that you may have been supplied with counterfeit goods?

 As long as Chua had any reason to suspect the genuineness of the goods, he should not remain in possession of them. Under the criminal law process in Singapore, Chua was expected to take reasonable precautions so as not to be in possession of such counterfeit goods. What is reasonable depends on the situation. For example, the usual practices of the industry may be taken into account – is it common practice for dealers of hand phone accessories to check with the proprietor, Samsung, whether the shipment they received was authentic? If this was indeed common practice, had Chua intended to sell the goods, but failed to check for their authenticity, he would not be afforded a defense under Section 49 (c)(i) of the Trade Marks Act.

Imagine another situation, where Chua is a hand phone dealer and he receives his supplies from a major electronics store (eg. Best Denki). Had such a reputable supplier assured Chua of the authenticity of the goods, it would perhaps have been reasonable for Chua to rely on these assurances and not have to take further precautions. If the goods in fact turn out to be counterfeit, Chua would be absolved from liability under Section 49 (c)(i).

Chua learnt his lesson that day. He learnt that trade mark infringement is akin to the theft of profits from the proprietor. This went against his conscience, for all he ever wanted was to put in an honest day’s work. He was upset that Beng would try to involve him in this illegal activity, and potentially make him a scapegoat of the crime. Chua returned the goods to Beng and wanted nothing further to do with him. Chua was prepared that if the authorities came to him, he would divulge all information he had about Beng and his counterfeit activities, as was expected of him under 49(c)(i) to avoid being convicted for possessing the goods. Indeed one must be kind, but one must be careful not to fall afoul of the law and end up doing harm. Ignorance of the law is no defense, and perhaps for small-time businessmen like Chua, it may be wise to follow the blogs of some law firms in Singapore and shore up on some legal knowledge. That would come in most valuable when faced in potentially litigious situations. But as always, when in doubt, rather than rely on yourself and risk severe penalties, it is always prudent to turn to a lawyer, the earlier the better.

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About Criminal Law

Philip Ben is young law practitioner and writes mostly on subjects related to Laws in Singapore, specially the Criminal Law and criminal procedures. Besides, he loves to read book, travel and cycling.