Protecting the Injured Party in Comparative Advertising by Claiming Unfair Competition

Comparative commercial advertising, which is based on comparison of features and characteristics of competitors’ goods and services, is one of the most popular ways of advertising and an important means of protection consumers’ rights. A comparative advertising is legitimate in light of principles such as co-operation and piety, forbidding injustice and keeping the trust and it will not incur responsibility for the advertiser. If the conditions are not complied with and damages are brought to competitors, they may file a lawsuit against the advertiser’s unfair competition. Differences such as specific definitions of negligence in some legal systems, and quality of proof of harm, distinguish an unfair competition from a general civil liability dispute. The unfair competition lawsuit in a court of law may lead to the issuance of a warrant for compensation in cash, an order to stop broadcasting advertising, the insertion of a ruling in the press, or a correctional advertisement to compensate the damage sustained to the competitor's reputation. In this article, some international treaties and the laws of some jurisdictions have been discussed and it has been investigated how the law is enforced and implemented in Iranian law.