Summary
Contribution on the proportionality of sanctions for intellectual property infringements. It starts from the judgment of the Court of Justice of 19 October 2023 in G. ST. T. (C-655/21): because Member States implement Article 61 of TRIPS, Article 49(3) of the Charter applies to criminal penalties for infringement and precluded a Bulgarian minimum sentence of five years’ imprisonment. Belgian criminal law, by contrast, leaves the judge enough flexibility. The authors then argue that a high penalty payment (astreinte) attached to an injunction can be a sanction of a criminal nature under the Engel criteria so that EU law requires the judge to assess its proportionality, despite the rule that an accrued penalty payment cannot be reduced.
Reference
H. Haouideg et S. Debaene, « La proportionnalité des sanctions en matière de propriété intellectuelle : la question des astreintes », Intellectuele eigendom in beweging - Capita Selecta, LEA Uitgevers, 2026, p. 181-198.