Studies On Punitive Damages In Buying Fake Products On Purpose And Application In Food And Pharmaceutical Sector

At present,the market for food and medicine in China is flooded with counterfeit and shoddy goods that infringe on the legitimate rights and interests of consumers.Professional counterfeiters have emerged.With the gradual improvement of the national legal system,China's Consumer Protection Law and Food Safety Law claim punitive damages for consumers after buying counterfeit and shoddy goods.Article 55 of the Consumer Protection Law provides for punitive damages for breach of contract and infringement.According to the difference of subjective “knowledgeable” conditions,the Food Safety Law provides the principles of no fault liability and fault liability respectively for producers and sellers.In 2014,the Supreme Court explicitly supported the purchasers' use of punitive damages for knowing that they were buying fake products in the way of judicial interpretation.In addition,the State Administration for Industry and Commerce in 2016 and the Supreme People's Court in 2018 gave a negative evaluation for the behavior of buying fake products on purpose,respectively,in the form of comment drafts and judicial interpretations.In academic circles,scholars hold different attitudes towards buying fake products on purpose.The negative view is that the behavior of buying fake products on purpose is beyond the context of the consumer needs and wastes judicial resources.Scholars who hold positive views come to the conclusion that it is necessary for the existence of buying fake products on purpose from the analysis of legal loopholes and the current market situation.Scholars with a neutral viewpoint believe that the analysis of specific cases is able to lead to specific conclusions.The disagreement of the theoretical viewpoints and the inconsistency of legal provisions make the referee judges at a loss in the case materials.The obstacles to applying the punitive damage to buying fake products on purpose in the judicial practice are the traditional principle of equal protection and the principle of good faith.The principle of civil law that "Absence of Legal Prohibition Means Freedom" has reserved space for obtaining punitive damages in buying fake products on purpose.The application of punitive damages in buying fake products on purpose is conducive to the realization of social justice values,the maintenance of market economic order,and protecting consumers in a disadvantaged position.In order to make the use of punitive damages in buying fake products on purpose and the application in the food and pharmaceutical sector,first of all,we should unify the provisions of the punitive damages system,scientifically legislate,and play a guiding role in judicial interpretation.Second,we should standardize the content of the legal system,unify the applicable conditions of punitive damages,and make specific definitions of the subject conditions and subjective conditions of consumers.Finally,we will integrate agricultural products into the scope of the food and pharmaceutical industry to better protect consumers' health.