COMPETITION • FRENCH LAW • UNFAIR COMPETITION
An action in unfair competition is a tort action which has a dual purpose: compensatory and preventive. Consequently, it authorizes the person exercising it to seek both an order for damages and an injunction against the offender. Depending on the claim, the court may therefore order several measures, if necessary cumulatively. It has the power to order all measures necessary to put an end to the conduct complained of. These may be injunctions to take some action (order to destroy vials and boxes imitating those of a well-known perfume) or to desist from an action (order to stop the spreading of disparaging messages online); these measures may even be imposed as a preventive measure, in the absence of any harm.
