Along came a spider...

I. Introduction

I.A. The development of EC law on unfair commercial practices

I.B. Regulation and self-regulation

II. Scope of European Unfair Commercial Practices Law

II.A. Commercial Practices and Free Speech

2.1 (EU) ECJ Case C-368/95, 26 June 1997, Vereinigte Familiapress Zeitungsverlags- und vertriebs GmbH v Heinrich Bauer Verlag, Familiapress. O·H
2.2 (EU) ECJ Case C-71/02, 25 March 2004, Herbert Karner Industrie-Auktionen GmbH v Troostwijk GmbH, Karner. O·H
2.3 (DE) BGH (Federal Supreme Court), 6 December 2001, Stern v Benetton, Benetton at the BGH. O·H
2.4 (DE) Bundesverfassungsgericht (The Federal Constitutional Court), 11 March 2003, Stern v Benetton, Benetton at the Bundesverfassungsgericht. O·H
2.5 (FI) The Finnish Market Court, X v Benetton, Benetton in Finland.
2.6 (BE) Raad voor Reclame (Advertising Council), 9 February 2000, X v Benetton, Benetton in Belgium. O·H
2.7 (BE) Raad voor Reclame (Advertising Council), 10 June 1999, X v Benetton, Benetton in Belgium II. O·H
2.8 (EU) ECJ Case C-36/02, 14 October 2004, Omega Spielhallen- und Automatenaufstellungs-GmbH v Oberbürgermeisterin der Bundesstadt Bonn, The public policy defence. O·H

II.B. Protection of interests other than the economic interests of consumers

II.B.1. Health and safety in EC law on unfair commercial practices

2.9 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD), 11 May 2005. O·H
2.10 (EU) T Wilhelmsson, Scope of the Directive, 2006.
2.11 (EU) ECJ Case C-99/01, 24 October 2002, Dermatologically tested. O·H

II.B.2. Foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, tobacco and alcohol regulation

II.B.3. Gender discrimination in advertising

2.12 (BG) E Millan and R Elliott, Offensive Advertising, Public Policy and the Law, 2004. H
2.13 (UK) Code of Advertising Practice (CAP). O·H
2.14 (UK) G Howells, Towards a better understanding of unfair commercial practices, 2008. H
2.15 (BE) Raad voor Reclame (Advertising Council), 2 September 2003, X v Martini, Martini. O·H
2.16 (BE) Raad voor Reclame (Advertising Council), 8 May 2001, Taste of Honey. O·H
2.17 (ES) Jurado de Autocontrol de la Publicidad (Jury for the Self monitoring of Advertising), 8 January 2007, Asociación de Usuarios de la Comunicación v Seat SA, Seat León.

III. The notion of fairness

III.A. The structure of the control concept

2.18 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive , 11 May 2005. O·H

III.B. Fairness, professional diligence and material distortion of consumers

2.19 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, 11 May 2005. O·H
2.20 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, 11 May 2005. O·H

III.B.1. National notions of fairness

2.21 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, 11 May 2005. O·H
2.22 (BE) Cour de Cassation (Supreme Court), 2 May 1985, Ostexpo Ostend. O·H
2.23 (AT) Bundesgesetz gegen den Unlauteren Wettbewerb (Unfair Competition Act), 13 November 2007. O·H
2.24 (BE) Trade Practices Act, 21 June 2007. O·H
2.25 (FR) Code de la Consommation (Consumer Code), 3 January 2008. O·H
2.26 (FI) Consumer Protection Act (not yet implemented). H
2.27 (DE) Gesetz gegen den unlauteren Wettbewerb (Unfair Competition Act), 3 July 2004, 3 July 2004. O·H
2.28 (ES) Law 3/1991 on Unfair Competition (not yet implemented), 10 January 1991. O·H
2.29 (UK) The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations, 26 May 2008. O·H

III.B.2. Is there an obligation to introduce the concept of fairness tel quel?

2.30 (DE) T Lettl, Community Law and the new UWG, 2004. O·H
2.31 (DE) F Henning-Bodewig, Reform of the UWG and the Proposal for a Directive, 2004.
2.32 (DE) D Seichter, The Implementation of the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD), 2005. H
2.33 (DE) Glöckner, The Proposal for an Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, The German UWG or The Difficult Implementation of European open Norms, 2004. H
2.34 (DE) H Gamerith, The Proposal for an Unfair Commercial Practices Directive - Possibilities for a Harmonious Implementation, 2005. H

III.B.3. The role and function of the general clause – safety net?

2.35 (DE) WB Schünemann, Unfairness, 2004. H
2.36 (DE) J Glöckner, Introduction, 1994.
2.37 (EU) J Stuyck, E Terryn and T van Dyck, Confidence through fairness?, 2006. H
2.38 (EU) Case C-261/07 and C-299/07, 23 April 2009, VTB-VAB. O·H

III.C. Fairness, taste, decency and culture – how are they interrelated?

2.39 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD), 2005. O·H
2.40 (EU) ECJ Case C-220/98, 13 January 2000, Estée Lauder Cosmetics GmbH & Co. OHG v Lancaster Group GmbH, Lifting Cream. O·H
2.41 (EU) T Wilhelmsson, Scope of the Directive, 2006.

III.D. The average consumer and particularly vulnerable groups

2.42 (DE) Der Bundesgerichtshof (BGH), 22 September 2005, 22 September 2005, publisher of a monthly magazine for young women v competitor, Sunglasses. O·H
2.43 (DE) BGH, 6 April 2006, 6 April 2006, Ring tone advertising. O
2.44 (FI) J Keßler and T Wilhelmsson, Country Report, 2002.

IV. Misleading practices

IV.A. Definition

2.45 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, 11 May 2005. O·H
2.46 (FR) Consumer Code (Code de la Consommation), 2010. O·H
2.47 (FR) Cour de cassation, cass. crim., 14 October 1998. O·H

IV.B. Untruthfulness/deceptiveness condition

2.48 (DE) Hanseatisches OLG (Court of Appeal), 15 January 2007, FACTS-good. O
2.49 (FR) Cour de cassation, ch. crim., 21 May 1984, Football match between bulldozers. O·H
2.50 (EU) ECJ Case C-470/93, 6 July 1995, Verein gegen Unwesen in Handel und Gewerbe Köln e.V. v Mars GmbH, +10% Mars. O·H
2.51 (ES) Audiencia Provincial (Court of Appeal) Alicante, 19 September 2002, Multi-property timeshare.

IV.C. The materiality condition

2.52 (EU) ECJ Case C-373/90, 16 January 1992, Nissan. O·H

IV.D. What information?

2.53 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD), 11 May 2005. O·H

V. Misleading omission

V.A. A European duty to disclose information?

2.54 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD), 11 May 2005. O·H
2.55 (EU) T Wilhelmsson, European Fair Trading Law, 2006.
2.56 (EU) J Stuyck, E Terryn and T van Dyck, Confidence through Fairness?, 2006.

V.B. Member States’ approaches to the disclosure of information

2.57 (SE) Marknadsföringsmag (Marketing Act) , 1995. O·H
2.58 (FI) Consumer Protection Act 38/1978 (English version). O·H
2.59 (BE) Trade Practices Act, 31 December 1955. O·H
2.60 (ES) La Ley General para la Defensa de los Consumidores y Usuarios (General Consumer Protection Act), 2007. O·H
2.61 (DE) Gesetz gegen den Unlauteren Wettbewerb (UWG), Unfair Competition Act, 2004. O·H
2.62 (UK) C Twigg-Flesner, Consumer Product Guarantees.

V.C. The invitation to purchase

2.63 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD), 11 May 2005. O·H

V.D. Established information requirements, Article 7(5)

2.64 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, 11 May 2005. O·H
2.65 (EU) J Stuyck, E Terryn and T Van Dyck, Confidence through fairness?, 2006.

VI. Language in commercial practices

2.66 (EU) ECJ Case C-366/98, 12 September 2000, Geoffrey. O·H

VII. Comparative advertising

2.67 (EU) Directive on Comparative Advertising (97/55/EC), 6 October 1997. O·H
2.68 (EU) ECJ Case C-356/04, 19 September 2006, Lidl Belgium GmbH & Co KG v Etablissementen Franz Colruyt NV, Lidl. O·H
2.69 (ES) Tribunal Supremo (Supreme Court), 24 February 1997, Coca-Cola. O·H
2.70 (ES) Tribunal Supremo (Supreme Court, Private law Chamber), 4 June 2002, DIA supermarkets v Bon Preu SA supermarket, Good Price SA but bad publicity .

VIII. Aggressive practices and sales promotion

VIII.A. Aggression

2.71 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD), 11 May 2005. O·H

VIII.B. Harassment

VIII.B.1. Means of communication

2.72 (FR) Loi informatique et libertés (Act on Data Processing and Fundamental Rights), 6 January 1978. O·H
2.73 (DE) BGH, 27 January 2000, 27 January 2000, Cold calling prohibited. O·H
2.74 (UK) Telephone Preference Service (TPS). H

VIII.B.2. Place: direct selling

2.75 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD), 11 May 2005. O·H
2.76 (EU) ECJ Case 382/87, 16 May 1989, R. Buet and Educational Business Services (EBS) v Ministère public., Educational Materials. O·H

VIII.C. Coercion

2.77 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD), 11 May 2005. O·H

VIII.D. Undue influence

VIII.D.1. The definition

2.78 (EU) The Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD), 11 May 2005. O·H

VIII.D.2. Free gifts in the case-law of the ECJ

2.79 (EU) ECJ Case 286/81, 15 November 1982, Oosthoek. O·H

VIII.D.3. National laws on sales promotions

2.80 (BE) Trade Practices Act, 14 July 1991. O·H
2.81 (FR) Consumer Code (Code de la Consommation), 1 January 2010. O·H

VIII.E. National sales promotion law and the scope of UCPD

2.82 (EU) J Stuyck, E Terryn and T Van Dyck, Confidence through fairness?, 2006.
2.83 (EU) ECJ Cases 261/07 and C-299/07, 23 April 2009, VTB-VAB. O·H
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