From May 20, old cigarette packs will no longer be made in France. A decision that tobacco companies hope to see overturned. La Seita appealed to the Council of State.
While the Constitutional Council considered at the end of January that the neutral packages comply with the French Constitution, the tobacco industry is trying a last standstill. La Seita (1), the French subsidiary of the British tobacco company Imperial Tobacco, announced on Monday that it was going to seize the Council of State to have the decree concerning the neutral package annulled. The producer of famous cigarettes and tobacco (Gitanes, Gauloises, Royale, etc.) emphasizes “respect for intellectual property rights” linked to its brands.
“Our right to use our brands, some of which were created more than 100 years ago in France, must be respected. We warned that as a last resort, we would use all legal possibilities to save it. Today, our rights are clearly violated in France, homeland of freedom of expression, while they are respected in all the other countries of continental Europe ”, declared Axel Gietz, Director of Corporate Affairs World, quoted in a statement. He also believes that “the neutral package in French sauce is contrary to all the objectives of European harmonization”.
Disappearance of 4 elements
As arguments, Seita explains that “the decree establishing the neutral package requires the disappearance of at least 4 of the 5 figurative or semi-figurative elements (logo, typography, color and shape), all these elements being considered as brands in their own right by the Intellectual Property Code. It deprives the manufacturer of his rights, which is contrary to the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen (Articles 17 and 2) and to the French Constitution ”, she believes.
Thus, the Seita appeals directly to the Council of State “to ask it to put an end to this disproportionate and unprecedented attack on the property rights of industrialists”. “We are now waiting for the Council of State to recognize that we have been illegally expropriated from our brands. Public debate has been distorted throughout the legislative process. The Minister and the deputies gave in to the sirens of the anti-tobacco associations which, after having promised wonders of this measure, recognize that the neutral package will not be effective ”, concludes Axel Gietz
However, as this appeal is not suspensive, the neutral package will come into force on May 20 in French tobacco shops, and the latter will have until January 2017 to sell their old stocks.
(1) Company for the Industrial Exploitation of Tobacco and Matches
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