Seizure of DC shoes
Under Thai law, if a rights holder has valid grounds for suspecting that the importation of counterfeit branded product may take place, he may lodge an application in writing with the Customs Department for the suspension of the release into free circulation of such goods. The evidence to be submitted to the Customs Department includes information as to the arrival date of the counterfeit goods; details of the exporter and importer; the place or port of arrival; and the brands being infringed. It is generally difficult to obtain all the necessary details.
In this case in 2004, after a two month investigation, we managed to collect all the information necessary to convince Thai Customs to intercept a container of counterfeit DC branded shoes, coming from China. Thousands of DC shoes were seized.
Prior notice Custom raids of this kind are very rare in Thailand due, essentially, to the difficulty of obtaining the information and evidence required by Thai Customs.
We subsequently lodged criminal action for trade mark infringement against the importer.
