The UCL forbids "unlawful, unfair or fraudulent" conduct in connection with virtually any type of business activity. With its sweeping liability standards and broad equitable remedies, the UCL is often the weapon of choice for plaintiffs' lawyers and is almost uniformly invoked by prosecutors in consumer cases.
As a general rule, any act or practice carried out in the course of industrial or commercial activities contrary to honest practices constitutes an act of unfair competition; the decisive criterion being “contrary to honest practices”.
The law describes “unfair competition” as any unlawful, unfair, or fraudulent business act or practice, or false, deceptive, or misleading advertising. To pursue lawsuits under California's unfair competition law, a consumer or business must prove suffering and financial or property losses due to an unfair practice.
The primary legal remedies for unfair competition under California laws include the recovery of damages as well as injunctive relief and/or equitable relief (immediately stop what you are doing and/or cease and desist orders).
Penalties for unfair competition may include: Restitution to businesses injured by the action in the form of lost profits or other monetary damages, Punitive damages, designed to punish the defendant, Attorney's fees and costs, and.
The penalties for violations of California antitrust laws can be severe. Treble damages and recovery of attorney fees are available for both private and government enforcement. Criminal penalties include fines of $1 million for corporations and Page 7 3 $250,000 and imprisonment for up to 3 years for individuals.
Intellectual property offences provide well-known examples of unfair competition – these include counterfeiting, trade secret misappropriation and design right infringement.
Civil Penalty for Violation of Chapter (a) Any person who engages, has engaged, or proposes to engage in unfair competition shall be liable for a civil penalty not to exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) for each violation, which shall be assessed and recovered in a civil action brought in the name of the ...
The California Unfair Competition Law (UCL) is codified in Bus. & Prof. Code section 17200. The UCL protects consumers against business fraud, false advertising, and other deceptive practices by placing limits on companies doing business in California.