Sayenko Kharenko’s intellectual property attorneys have successfully defended the rights and interests of Philip Morris in a criminal case regarding the illegal use of a trademark—an organized group of criminals set up the wholesale production and sale of counterfeit BOND STREET cigarettes.
A criminal case was initiated against the persons involved in the production and distribution of counterfeit cigarettes, in particular, for the illegal use of trademarks, which is punishable under Article 229 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
Thanks to the strategy developed by Sayenko Kharenko’s attorneys to protect the client’s interests, timely collection and provision of all necessary evidence and proactive coordination with law enforcement agencies, the pre-trial criminal investigation was completed within a short time, and the case was brought to court. After a series of court hearings, Zaliznychnyi District Court on 17.08.2023 found three members of the criminal group guilty, ordered the destruction of the counterfeit products and the entire production line of the infringers, imposed suspended sentences, and ordered them to pay compensation over UAH 1.4 million.
“Law enforcement agencies are currently investigating at least 6 criminal cases of counterfeiting Philip Morris International brands. The cases have been opened against illegal producers in Dnipro, Chernivtsi, Kyiv and Odesa. For Philip Morris International, this is the first successful case of protecting its own brands in court during the company’s operation in Ukraine. We expect that in the future the interests of our business will be fairly protected in Ukrainian courts,” said Serhii Verbov, Illicit Trade Prevention Manager at Philip Morris Ukraine.
Sayenko Kharenko’s team advising on the case included partner Yaroslav Ognevyuk, senior associate Volodymyr Hrunskyi and associate Mykola Lysenko.
