Consumer Protection

Legislation to protect the consumer is embodied primarily in the Fair Trading Act and Consumer Guarantees Act. The Fair Trading Act is wider in scope and is often relied upon in trade mark infringement actions, or supplemental to actions based on common law rights of passing off. In particular section 9 protects against any action likely to mislead or deceive, while section 16 is specific to the false application and misuse of trade marks (regardless of whether registered or not).

The Consumer Guarantees Act is concerned more with the quality of goods which are sold, though may be a consideration in any licence or distributorship agreement.