glug: Re: Leggete

[Emulman]

1a. In cases of infringement committed on a commercial scale, the Member States shall ensure that, if the injured party demonstrates circumstances likely to endanger the recovery of damages, the judicial authorities may order the precautionary seizure of the movable and immovable property of the alleged infringer, including the blocking of his bank accounts and other assets. To this end, the competent authorities may order the communication of bank, financial or commercial documents, or appropriate access to the relevant information.

1b. The judicial authorities shall, in respect of the measures referred to in paragraphs 1 and 1a, have the authority to require the applicant to provide any reasonably available evidence in order to satisfy themselves with a sufficient degree of certainty that the applicant is the right holder and that the applicant's right is being infringed, or that such infringement is imminent.

2. Member States shall ensure that the provisional measures referred to in paragraphs 1 and 1a may, in appropriate cases, be taken without the defendant having been heard, in particular when any delay would cause irreparable prejudice to the right holder. In the event of this happening, the parties shall be so informed without delay after the execution of the measures at the latest.

A review, including the right to be heard, shall take place upon request of the defendant with a view to deciding, within a reasonable time after notification of the measures, whether these measures shall be modified, revoked or confirmed.

3. Member States shall ensure that the provisional measures referred to in paragraphs 1 and 1a shall be revoked, or otherwise cease to have effect, upon request by the defendant, if the applicant does not institute proceedings leading to a decision on the merits of the case before the competent judicial authority within a reasonable period to be determined by the judicial authority ordering the measures where the Member State 's law so permits or, in the absence of such determination, within a period not to exceed 20 working days or 31 calendar days, whichever is the longer.

4. The competent judicial authorities may make the provisional measures referred to in paragraphs 1 and 1a subject to the lodging by the applicant of adequate security or equivalent assurance intended to ensure any compensation of the prejudice suffered by the defendant as provided for in paragraph 5. 

5. Where the provisional measures are revoked or where they lapse due to any act or omission by the applicant, or where it is subsequently found that there has been no infringement or threat of infringement of an intellectual property right, the judicial authorities shall have the authority to order the applicant, upon request of the defendant, to provide the defendant with appropriate compensation for any injury caused by these measures.


Article 16
Alternative measures

Member States may provide that, in appropriate cases and at the request of the person liable to be subjected to the measures provided for in this Section, the competent judicial authorities may order pecuniary compensation to be paid to the injured party instead of applying the above measures if that person has acted unintentionally and without negligence, if execution of the measures in question would cause him disproportionate harm and if pecuniary compensation to the injured party appears reasonably satisfactory. 

Article 20
Sanctions by Member States

Without prejudice to the civil and administrative measures and procedures laid down by this Directive, Member States may apply other appropriate sanctions in cases where intellectual property rights have been infringed.