Unfair Competition Legal Advice in Vietnam

As the market is developing, the competitiveness between businesses also increases. Along with the positive development of the market, unfair competition is also taking place strongly. In the following article, Viet An Law will provide unfair competition legal advice in Vietnam with content as below.

Legal basis

• Law on Competition 2018;
• Intellectual Property Law 2005, as amended and supplemented in 2009, 2019,2022;
• Law on Advertising 2012;
• Decree 75/2019/ND-CP regulates sanctions for administrative violations in the field of competition;
• Decree 99/2013/NĐ-CP regulates sanctions for administrative violations in the field of industrial property, amended, supplemented by Decree 126/2021/NĐ-CP, Decree 46/2024/ND-CP.

What is unfair competition in Vietnamese law?

According to the provisions of the Competition Law, unfair competition is the behavior of enterprises that violates the principles of goodwill, honesty, commercial practices, and other standards in business activities, causing damage or potentially causing damage to the legitimate interests of other enterprises.

Unfair competition practices are prohibited by law

Article 45, Competition Law lists unfair competition practices prohibited by law, including:

• Acts of violating confidential business information in the following forms:
  • Accessing or obtaining confidential business information by circumventing the security measures of the owner of such information;
  • Disclosing or using confidential business information without the permission of the owner of that information.
• Coercing customers and partners of other businesses by threatening or coercive behavior to force them not to transact or stop transacting with competing businesses.
• Directly or indirectly providing dishonest information about a competing enterprise by providing dishonest information about a competing enterprise that adversely affects the reputation, business operations, or financial situation of that enterprise.
• Directly or indirectly disrupting the business operations of a competing enterprise by obstructing or interrupting the legitimate business operations of that enterprise.
• Illegally luring customers in the following ways:
  • Providing false or misleading information to customers about the business, goods, services, promotions, and transaction conditions related to the goods and services provided by the business to attract customers of other competing businesses;
  • Comparing your goods and services with the same type of goods and services of other businesses without proving the content.
• Selling goods or providing services below total cost leads to or is likely to lead to the elimination of other businesses that are also trading in the same type of goods or services.
• Other acts of unfair competition prohibited by other laws.

In the sector of advertising, Article 8 of the Advertising Law, advertising uses unhealthy competition content as prescribed by law provisions on competition.

In the sector of intellectual property, Article 130 of the Intellectual Property Law also stipulates prohibited acts of unfair competition, including the following acts:

• Using commercial indications to confuse business entities, business activities, or commercial origin of goods or services.
• Using commercial indications to confuse the origin, production method, utilities, quality, quantity, or other characteristics of goods or services; or as to the conditions for provision of goods or services.
• Using marks protected in a country that is a contracting party to a treaty to which Vietnam is also a contracting party and under which representatives or agents of owners of such marks are prohibited from using such marks, if users are representatives or agents of the mark owners and such use is neither consented to by the mark owners nor justified.
• Registering or possessing the right to use or using domain names identical with, or confusingly similar to, protected trade names or marks of others, or geographical indications without having the right to use, to possess domain names, benefit from or prejudicing reputation and popularity of respective marks, trade names or geographical indications.

Notes for businesses when competing in the market

When operating in the market, competition between businesses is inevitable. Businesses need to compete fairly to avoid violating competition laws. Because, when competing unfairly, businesses will be fined according to the law, and at the same time, businesses will lose their reputation with customers.

Instead, businesses can choose to compete healthily in the following ways:

• Provide reasonable product and service prices to attract customers;
• Improve product and service quality;
• Continuously update and innovate products and services to meet market changes;
• Research the market, and consider competitors to create a market for your own business.

Unfair competition legal advice in Vietnam of Viet An Law

• Support consulting clients on regulations related to unfair competition;
• Support consulting for customers when facing unfair competition;
• Support customers in drafting petitions and documents to initiate lawsuits when there are disputes related to unfair competition;
• Represent clients in resolving disputes related to unfair competition at competent authorities.

If you have questions related to unfair competition legal services in Vietnam, please contact Viet An Law Firm to receive the best support from our team of lawyers!