Background to the 1984 Trademark Counterfeiting Act
Need for Deterrence
Prior to the enactment of the Trademark Counterfeiting Act of 1984, no specific criminal penalties existed for the trafficking and sale of goods bearing false trademarks.1 The absence of criminal penalties, along with arguably weak civil remedies, made it profitable for the unscrupulous to engage in a multibillion-dollar black market.2 Because federal prosecutors at the time had a limited understanding of the problem and were only able to prosecute a small number of counterfeiting cases, it was the intent of the Congress to strengthen the remedies available to those who went after the counterfeiters, and to provide additional civil remedies ...
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