Victory in a complex case of unfair competition, infringement of trade secrets and intellectual property rights

Ellex Valiunas’ legal team successfully defended the interests of a client (plaintiff) operating in the field of testing, inspection, and certification (TIC) in an unfair competition and intellectual property infringement dispute against the client’s former CEO and a group of competing companies.

The dispute arose out of the defendants’ unlawful actions in setting up a competing business group, illegally taking over part of the client’s employees and clients, using confusingly similar legal entities’ names and commercial marks in their commercial activities, thereby seeking to take advantage of the client’s long-standing presence and reputation in the TIC market.

Vilnius Regional Court and the Court of Appeal of Lithuania found in the case brought by the client that the defendants had systematically engaged in unfair competition practices against the plaintiff, both by using confusingly similar commercial marks, confidential business information, and by deliberately selecting a confusingly similar trading names and visual identity in order to take advantage of the client’s reputation on the market.

The courts of both instances upheld the client’s claim in full and rejected the defendants’ counterclaim. In addition to jointly and severally awarding from the defendants the full amount of damages claimed by the client, the courts also prohibited the opponents from using the disputed commercial marks and ordered them to change their legal entities’ names, thus restoring the situation prior to the infringement. The final judgment in the case is available here (in Lithuanian).

The outcome of the case confirms that unfair competition and infringement of intellectual property rights are not tolerated in Lithuanian law and that persons seeking to unfairly profit at the expense or reputation of other market participants will face severe legal consequences. Ellex Valiunas’ experts, having a long-standing experience in such type of disputes, have shared their tips on what circumstances and evidence may be relevant for businesses suspecting their former employee, business partner or competitor engaging in unfair competition practices.

The client’s interests were represented by the firm’s experts within the dispute resolution and IP law: partner Miroslav Nosevič, associate partner Simona Budreikaitė, senior associates Vilius Norvaišas, Aušra Zabulionytė, and junior associates Martynas Šeškus and Dominykas Kiršis.