In part 1, we presented the fine level for several copyright infringement acts specified in Decree 131. In part 2, we continue to present the fine bracket, the prescriptive time limits for imposing penalties for administrative violations, and the competence to sanction administrative violations.
2. Fine bracket
According to the provisions of Clause 1, Article 2 of Decree 131, the maximum fine level in the domain of copyright and related rights for individuals will be VND 250,000,000, and for organizations will be VND 500,000,000.
3. Prescriptive time limits for imposing penalties for administrative violations
- In-progress administrative violations and completed administrative violations against regulations on copyright and related rights:
- In-progress administrative violation against regulations on copyright and related rights is a persistent violation that has been occurring at the time when it is discovered and penalized by the competent authority or competent person and has been directly infringing upon state management order (“In-progress administrative violation”).
- Completed administrative violation against regulations on copyright and related rights is a violation which is committed on one or more occasions and grounds and information are proving that such violation had been completed before the competent authority or competent person discovered such violation (“Completed administrative violation”).
- The prescriptive time limit for imposition of a penalty for an administrative violation against regulations on copyright and related rights shall be 02 years.
- The dates which are used to determine the prescriptive time limits for imposing penalties for administrative violations against regulations on copyright and related rights are as follows:
- For an in-progress administrative violation, the prescriptive time limit begins from the date on which the competent law enforcement officer detects a such violation.
- For a completed administrative violation, the prescriptive time limit begins from the date on which that violation terminates.
- For a case where a penalty is imposed for an administrative violation committed by an organization or individual which is transferred by the competent person making the administrative violation record, the prescriptive time limit for imposition of a penalty is 2 years. The prescriptive time limit is calculated in the same as an in-progress administrative violation or a completed administrative violation, to the date on which the penalty imposition decision is issued.
- Within the time limits, if a violating person deliberately evades or militates against penalty imposition by a competent authority, the time limits shall be reset, starting from the time of abandonment of acts of evading or militating against penalty imposition.
4. Competence to sanction administrative violations
The competence to sanction administrative violations is specified in detail in Articles 36 to 40d of Decree 131.
To determine whether the person has the authority to sanction administrative violations, the following criteria need to be identified: i) Provisions on violations; ii) The maximum level of the fine bracket; iii) Remedial measures. Then, compare with the regulations on the competence to sanction administrative violations to determine who has the competence to sanction administrative violations. The person with sanctioning competence is the person who has the right to sanction the type of violation, to impose a fine greater than or equal to the maximum level of the fine bracket, and to apply remedial measures.
For example, For acts of publishing a work without the permission of the copyright owner, a fine of between VND 5,000,000 and 10,000,000 shall be imposed and the following remedial measures shall be applied: Forced public rectification on the mass media.
First, three criteria need to be identified: i) This act is specified in Article 11 of Decree 131; ii) The maximum fine for individuals is VND 10,000,000 and for organizations is VND 20,000,000; iii) Remedial measures are specified at Point e, Clause 1, Article 28 of the Law on Handling of Administrative Violations and Article 3 of Decree No 131.
Thus, the person with sanctioning competence for this act is the person who has the right to sanction the violation specified in Article 11, to impose a fine of VND 10,000,000 on individuals and VND 20,000,000 on organizations, and to apply remedial measures.
People with sanctioning competence, in this case, include: Chairpersons of the district-level People’s Committees; Chairpersons of the provincial People’s Committees; Chief Inspectors of the provincial Departments, Head of the specialized inspection team at the department level, Ministerial Chief Inspector of Culture, Sports and Tourism; Chief Inspector of Department, Head of the specialized inspection team at the department level, Ministerial Chief Inspector of Information and Communications, Director General of Vietnam Maritime Administration, Director General of Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam, Director General of Authority of Radio Frequency Management, Director General of Vietnam Telecommunications Authority, Director General of Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information, Director General of Agency of Press and Director General of Authority of Publication, Printing, and Distribution.
5. Legal services to support copyright protection of Vietnam Copyright Development Joint Stock Company
With a team of experienced legal experts, VCD confidently assists Clients in resolving issues related to copyright protection. With the principle of always protecting Clients’ legal rights and interests, VCD strives to provide the most prompt and effective work implementation. Besides, VCD regularly reports the progress and provides the next action plan so that Clients can easily monitor and evaluate the work results. Clients can completely trust our legal services to protect the copyright.
Above is the article “Sanctioning of administrative violations for the acts of copyright infringement (Part 2)“. We hope this article is useful to you.
