New York Trademark Counterfeiting Crimes

Although the “glory days” of Canal Street knock offs are long gone, criminal lawyers practicing Trademark Counterfeit defense can certainly tell you that fraudulent designer handbags, counterfeit designer clothes, and other fake products from sneakers and electronics to medicine and automobile parts still flood the market. Whether its bogus brake pads, clothing labels, computer accessories, or pharmaceuticals, law enforcement is routinely on the lookout for crimes that both violate intellectual property laws and endanger consumers. Even trademark counterfeiting crimes that do not pose a threat to one’s safety, Burberry, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and Yves Saint Laurent purses and wallets or Rolex, Cartier, and Bulgari watches, for example, do not escape the piercing gaze of police officers, District Attorneys and the New York State Attorney General. Whether you are accused of storing, selling or making trademarked items without permission and authority, such as sunglasses, shoes or just about any product to be worn or consumed, know that arrests can lead to both misdemeanor and felony convictions, incarceration and collateral consequences that will upend your life. Make no mistake. Prosecutions for NY Penal Law 165.71, 165.72 and 165.73 are not to be taken lightly.

Trademark Counterfeiting: Understanding the Crime

New York Trademark Counterfeiting crimes are all spokes from the main wheel of Third Degree Trademark Counterfeiting, New York Penal Law 165.71 . In order for the police, such as New York City’s NYPD, to arrest you, these law enforcement officers must have probable cause to believe that you had the intent to deceive or defraud another person or have the intent to evade a lawful restriction on the sale, resale, offering for sale, or distribution of goods. In doing so probable cause must exists confirming that you manufactured, distributed, sold or offered to sell these goods that bear a counterfeit or possess a trademark. An added and essential element of PL 165.71 is that you, the accused possessor, seller, distributor, etc., also knew that the good or goods in question were in fact counterfeit.

• Trademark Counterfeiting Definitions and Laws

The difference between the class “A” misdemeanor of Trademark Counterfeiting in the Third Degree from the more serious felony crimes of Second and First Degree Trademark Counterfeiting is the retail value of the counterfeited goods. If the amount in their respective totality exceed $1,000.00, then the crime is a class “E” felony of Second Degree Trademark Counterfeiting pursuant to New York Penal Law 165.72. Should you be accused of a counterfeiting crime with a retail value north of $100,000.00, then the offense is a class “C” felony ofFirst Degree Trademark Counterfeiting pursuant to New York Penal Law 165.73. Other than these retail calculations, the crime of Trademark Counterfeiting in New York is generally the same offense regardless of the degree.

Trademark Counterfeiting: Penalties and Punishment

The potential penalty and punishment for a Trademark Counterfeiting conviction in New York State depends on many factors and, for a person with no prior criminal history, the sentence can vary within a range. One of the jobs your criminal defense lawyer will have when representing you in a Trademark Counterfeiting arrest and prosecution will be to first challenge the legality of the search, the basis of the counterfeit claims, and the assertion of your knowledge of and about the contraband. Without diving too much into these and other areas that may be the foundation for your defense to a Trademark Counterfeiting arrest, should your criminal lawyer be unable to secure a dismissal, upon sentencing to the class “A” misdemeanor of NY PL 165.71 you will face up to a year in a county jail (Rikers Island in New York City). If you are convicted of the class “E” felony of NY PL 165.72, a state prison sentence of up to four years in prison is in your future while fifteen years incarceration is possible upon a conviction for NY PL 165.73.

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Whether it is fifteen years in prison or you never set foot in jail other than after your arrest while you waited to see a judge, know that a conviction for any degree of Trademark Counterfeiting in New York State is more than a blemish on your record. It is both permanent and crippling.

If you are charged with Trademark Counterfeiting, whether as a felony or misdemeanor, be smart and take note of the grave situation you face. A violent sexual crime it is not, but when it comes time to fight your criminal case or mitigate your conduct, the last thing you want to do is know that the predicament you find yourself in is a direct result of your own lack of effort retaining the best criminal lawyer and implementing the strongest defense possible.

When there is no substitute for knowledge, advocacy and experience, you can count on the New York criminal lawyers and former Manhattan prosecutors at Saland Law.

Call the New York Trademark Counterfeiting Defense Lawyers at Saland Law at 212.312.7129 or Contact Us Online to Start Your Criminal Defense Now.