Burberry to pay damages for false counterfeit accusation

Burberry has been ordered to damages to a Korean

retailer after it was wrongly accused of importing counterfeit clothing.

Burberry's infamous check pattern has long been replicated and sold on the black market, however this time Burberry's Korean unit got it wrong.

The British luxury brand has since been ordered to pay KRW10m (approx 9,475 US dollars) in damages to the local retailer. The South Korean store, which The Korea Herald did not name in its report, requested in 2010 an import declaration for 5,700 scarves from China worth KRW40m.

Korea Customs Service received a complaint from Burberry Korea, identified the goods as fake and seized them, according to the newspaper.

The importer later faced criminal charges for allegedly violating the trademark law.

Upon acquittal, the retailer filed a damages suit against Burberry Korea.

“Burberry products and the imported items had conspicuous differences, which (Burberry) would have been aware of, but still claimed a trademark breach, putting the plaintiff at risk of criminal punishment,” said the Seoul court.