The aim of this thesis is to examine trademarks and the possibilities of their application and use in the context of business competition. Trademarks are used widely in business and form part of an important and independent branch of the law. The thesis is divided into seven chapters. The first deals with the inclusion of trademark law into the broader area of intellectual property law. The following chapter describes the concepts of trademarks and legal sources. The law of trademarks is divided into a three level jurisdictional system - international, European and domestic law. The chapter also discusses the division of trademarks and describes their function. The conclusion of the chapter is devoted to the reasons for the refusal of registration of trademarks - namely absolute and relative. The third chapter focuses on the ways how trademark law is established. The establishment of trademarks is fundamentally based on the principle of registration. The exception is well known trademarks, which enjoy legal protection despite not being registered. The chapter is divided into three parts dealing with the registration procedure at the domestic, European and international level. In contrast, the fourth chapter contains circumstances under which trademarks lapse and are no longer in effect. The...

The topic of this diploma thesis is the relationship between rights of designation and unfair competition law. The thesis is divided into five chapters. The first two chapters define rights of designation and unfair competition law in general and the following chapters concentrate on the relationship between them. The first chapter focuses initially on the place of rights of designation in the system of intellectual propert y law and afterwards it concentrates on particular rights of designation, i.e. trademark, designation of origin and geographical indication. This chapter deals with characteristic features of the rights of designation and differences between them and national, international and european legislation. The emphasis is also put on current issues, that are related to the rights of designation. Chapter two is devoted to unfair competition law. This chapter focuses on legislation of unfair competition and the concept on which unfair competition law is based (that is combination of general clause and non-exhausting list of merits). Subsequently, it defines subjects of the unfair competition and claims that a subject affected by the unfair competition can make. The third chapter, which presents crucial part of this thesis, concetrates on the relationship between rights of designation and...

Unrelated business enterprises have been an appropriate way for nonprofit organizations to generate income since the first income tax was enacted into law. The Internal Revenue Act of 1950 clarified this opportunity and enacted the Unrelated Business Income Tax to ensure that fair competition existed between nonprofits and for profit organizations. Nonprofit organizations conducting unrelated business enterprises are faced with a dilemma: it is legal for them to conduct such enterprises but if they do so they face potential litigation from for profit business for unfair competition and/or potential loss of tax-exempt status for operating outside of their exempt function. This dissertation traces the history and theory of tax-exempt status, the history of unrelated business enterprises, and how several states, including Oregon, have addressed the issue. It then explains two major pieces of litigation in Oregon in the 1980's, Southern Oregon State College and YMCA of Columbia-Willamette, then discusses the history of the media attention and legislative/bureaucratic action in the same period. Current litigation and media attention is then discussed. The paper then discusses two theoretical frameworks, Agenda Building and Advocacy Coalition, as a means to analyze the data. Following is a discussion of how the issues of unrelated business enterprises and unfair business competition can be handled by nonprofits and the changing criteria for tax-exempt status in Oregon. The dissertation concludes with the changing criteria for tax-exempt status in Oregon and fundamental philosophical and political issues yet to be decided. Included are recommendations such as a periodic review of tax-exempt status of nonprofits, the need for nonprofits to continually review their mission and exempt purpose, the need for nonprofits to maintain their relationships with the community they serve, and how nonprofits need to develop a self-governing program before government develops one for them.

Thesis (doctoral)--Universite de Geneve, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 497-539) and index.

Thesis (doctoral)--Université de Genève. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 301-317) and index.

1 Abstract The crime of breach of regulations on rules of economic competition This thesis deals with the crime of breach of regulations on rules of economic competition under section 248 of the Criminal Code. This section consists of four separated crimes, where the author focuses only on the crime of unfair competition and the crime of conclusion of cartel agreement. In the first chapter the author concisely describes the historical background which is notable especially for legislation from period of the First Czechoslovak Republic. The author considers its significance mainly since the then Unfair Competition Act has been a source for the current provisions on unfair competition in the Civil Code. Moreover, the author intended to point out a very different rationale and approach to cartels under the then Act on Cartels in comparison with contemporary legal situation. After a general description of the elements of the crime in question in sense of systematic classification and introduction of its main issues the author presents two criminal law principles, i.e. subsidiarity of prosecution in criminal law and requirement of nullum crimen sine lege certa. The author examines both crimes in the light of these two principles throughout his whole thesis. In the third chapter the author inquires into legal...

La théorie de la concurrence déloyale n'a cessé d'évoluer en droit français. A l'origine, le droit français de la concurrence déloyale visait à protéger les intérêts individuels des concurrents, et ce en stigmatisant les moyens déloyaux par lesquels les agents économiques cherchaient à détourner la clientèle de leurs rivaux. Depuis quelques années, cette théorie subit des transformations très importantes. Aujourd'hui, elle a dépassé son seul et unique objectif, qui lui avait été reconnu depuis fort longtemps. En effet, elle ne vise plus uniquement la protection de la clientèle de la victime de l'acte déloyal, mais s'intéresse aussi aux atteintes à la capacité concurrentielle des autres opérateurs. Dès lors, la concurrence déloyale dans sa nouvelle conception tend à réguler le comportement objectif de tous les opérateurs sur le marché, qu'ils soient ou non concurrents aux fins de rétablir l'égalité affectée dans les moyens de concurrence. Malgré son introduction en droit jordanien par la loi de la concurrence déloyale n° 15 de l'année 2000, la théorie de la concurrence déloyale reste, selon sa compréhension stricte de la part de la doctrine jordanienne, alimentée par la présence de la formule de l'article 2 de la loi de la concurrence déloyale, enfermée dans une conception traditionnelle sans aucune évolution. Toutefois, l'unité du critère de la déloyauté du comportement fautif en droit français et en droit jordanien permet un rapprochement très utile entre les deux droits, de telle sorte que le droit jordanien pourrait, à son tour, suivre les évolutions constatées en droit français. Ainsi, la théorie de la concurrence déloyale pourrait être aménagée selon de nouveaux contours permettant d'adopter les solutions récentes acquises en droit français. / At the outset, the theory of unfair competition In French law was devoted to penalizing professionals who used means which were contrary to the honest commercial customs to lure away their competitor's customers. Over several years, this theory has undergone significant changes. Today, it no longer aims sloley at the protection of the clientele of the victim of unfair competition but also the smooth functioning of the market by regulating the behavior of all the economic operators, whether competitors or not, to ensure equality in competitive practices. Despite its introduction in Jordanian law by the law of unfair competition No. 15 of 2000, the theory of unfair competition remains, according to its strict understanding by the Jordanian doctrine fueled by the present formula of Article 2 of this law, to be confined in a conservative traditional construct. However, the uniformity of the test of unfairness regarding tortious behaviour under the French and Jordanian laws, provides a useful harmonised approach between the two laws, in a way that would allow the Jordanian law to follow the changing regulations intitiated by the French law. Thus, the theory of unfair competition could be modified in new contexts to allow the adoption of new solutions provided by the French law.

The once flourishing small-scale poultry industry in Ghana has over the past two decades undergone a severe deterioration as a result of fortunes that has diverted the industry from near self-sufficiency in the early 1990s to a net importer of poultry products. Since the later part of 1990s the Ghana market has followed a steep and uncontrolled influx of cheap poultry meat from subsidized poultry producers from advanced countries (Osei, unpublished) including USA and EU, not to mention countries such as Brazil and Canada. A multiplicity of factors have accounted for the decline and mortalities of the domestic poultry industry. These include unfair competition from subsidized poultry producers from advanced countries, unfavourable and indifferent government policy direction, escalating costs of production, inefficient methods of production, lack of funds and credit, inadequate knowledge in poultry management, socio-cultural factors, lack of information needs on the part of small-scale poultry farmers, inadequate access to market, lack of processing facilities, and high rates of perishability. Therefore, the present study examines the factors that affect the growth of the small agribusiness in Ghana, focusing mainly on the small-scale poultry industry. The purpose of the study is to provide guidelines and recommendations for improving poultry farming at the level of small-scale poultry farmers in Ghana through the organized social movement (new generation cooperative movement). The study further seeks to solicit government interventions through political arguments so as to sustain and strengthen the failing small-scale poultry industry in Ghana. The purpose of the organized social movement is to bundle competencies and resources that are more valuable in joint effort than when kept separate by the small-scale poultry farmers in racing against competitors who are driving them out of business. This is due to an on-going severe competition as a result of unprotected market and political bias of trade liberalization, structural adjustment policies and deregulations on the part of the government. A sample of 120 poultry farmers was selected by a stratified random sampling approach. This was followed by 75 stakeholders through a snowball approach and data was collected by using a semi-structured interviews. The findings of the study shows that the organized social movement (SM) of small-scale poultry farmers, provision of government subsidies, placing a ban or increase tariffs on imports of poultry meat, access to cheap loans, provision of infrastructure, access to incentives and awards, training and education of poultry farmers, advertising campaign, and dissemination of information, had positive and significant impact on the competitiveness and growth of the small-scale poultry industry.

The diploma thesis concentrates on the topic of trademarks in the context of the economic competition. The first part of the thesis is devoted to the general perspective on the trademarks and to the national and international legislation regulating the usage of trademarks. The second part of the thesis analyses the function and usage the trademarks in the context of the economic competition. The thesis is divided into 6 chapters. The first chapter focuses on the definition of the institute of a trademark and on its position in the system of intellectual property law. In addition, it provides an insight into the primary sources related to trademarks including the legislative norms and case-law. Moreover, the first chapter contains also a typological and functional classification of the trademarks and outlines the absolute and relative reasons for refusal to register a trademark and therefore for the denial to provide legal protection of this institute. The conclusion of the chapter is devoted to the various forms of expiry of the trademarks such as cancellation or expiration. Chapter two concentrates on the impact of the legal institute of a trademark. In particular, it focuses on the rights and duties of the owner of a trademark including the limitations of the intellectual property law imbued in a...

Resumé European Law against Unfair Competition This thesis focuses on the regulation of law against unfair competition adopted on the European Union level. The thesis is composed of two parts - the first one introduces legislative regulation of law against unfair competition, the second part analyses legal regulation of misleading and comparative advertisement as the examples of merits of unfair competition. The first part of the thesis firstly overviews the law against unfair competition on the international level; the core of the thesis, however, lies in the overview of legislation adopted by the European Union. Within the summary of the European legislation it firstly introduces the background for the legislative activity of the European Union in the field of unfair competition. Subsequently, it is followed up by the overview of directives with the primary aim to protect European businesses and consumers against unfair competition. When introducing the directives it emphasises mainly the findings whether it was adopted under minimum or maximum harmonisation, therefore to which extend the member state legislators are free to diverge from the regulation adopted by the European Union. The aim of the forth chapter is to look at the law against unfair competition as a part of private law. The second part of...