Recently, a Collegiate Court in Civil Matters upheld a thesis that established that expert accounting evidence is inadmissible in ordinary commercial proceedings when the alleged violation of copyright is claimed, if there is no previous judgment determining that the defendant is entitled to compensation for that concept, as this constitutes the source or condition to be able to quantify the damage through the intervention of experts.

The case that triggered this criterion involved a lawsuit claiming, among other things, compensation for alleged copyright infringement. The plaintiff requested the release of accounting expert evidence to review the defendant's accounting books and records, in order to calculate the amount of compensation.

In this regard, the Court considered that an accounting expert evidence cannot be used to determine the amount of compensation if there is still no final judgment recognizing the right to receive it, since it is necessary to first prove the copyright infringement according to Article 216 bis of the Federal Copyright Law by means of a final judgment, since according to Article 16 of the Federal Constitution, no one shall be disturbed without prior establishment of the legal basis for the proceedings.

Based on this criterion, it is established that copyright infringement must first be proven and only then can the amount of damages be assessed. This decision seeks to provide greater clarity to the proceedings and avoid unnecessary expenses or evidence for the parties involved.

We at OLIVARES remain attentive to the most recent and relevant criteria regarding damages, in order to provide our clients with strategic and preventive advice that allows them to avoid unjustified requirements and preserve their rights against improper legal actions.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON THE CONTENT OF THIS NEWSLETTER, PLEASE CONTACT:

Abraham Díaz

Abraham Díaz

Partner

Abraham Díaz “adds value for clients with diverse portfolios as a result of his tripartite copyright, trademark and unfair competition expertise,” according to World Trademark Review’s WTR 1000. He co-chairs OLIVARES’ Litigation Team, as well as Data Privacy and IT Industry groups and has a wealth of knowledge across all areas of intellectual property (IP), with a focus on litigation, copyright, trademarks, unfair competition, licensing, prosecution and opposition matters. He also counsels clients on trade dress, product configuration, advertising, false advertising, trade secrets, plant breeders’ rights, vegetal varieties; right of publicity; Internet and digital environment related issues, IT and Data Privacy matters.
Alejandro Luna Fandiño

Alejandro Luna Fandiño

Partner

Alejandro Luna joined OLIVARES in 1996 and being made partner in 2005, he has been instrumental to the firm´s IP Litigation, Regulatory and Administrative Litigation practices. He co-chairs the Life Sciences & Pharmaceutical Law industry group and coordinates the Litigation Department.
Armando Arenas

Armando Arenas

Partner

Armando Arenas joined OLIVARES in 2000 and became a partner in January 2017. He has experience working on a range of IP matters, including consulting and litigation on trademark, patent, unfair competition, trade dress protection, and misleading advertising cases before the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI), Federal Court of Tax and Administrative Affairs (FCTA), Federal Circuit Courts (FCC) and the Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) Regulatory Affairs and Public Acquisitions.

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