LAW 49/2005 - REFORM OF MISLEADING AND COMPARATIVE ADVERTISING LEGISLATION
PRESS RELEASE
PRESS RELEASE
The "Giulietti Act", reforming misleading advertising legislation comes into force today
Law 49/2005 (also known as the "Giulietti Act") comes into force today, reforming misleading and comparative advertising legislation.
Under the new legislation, the Competition Authority is given increased investigative powers and authority to oppose misleading advertising.
The law also increases the issue of penalties. In the past, the Authority could order the suspension of a misleading advertisement and require the offender to publish a notice in the press correcting it, together with an extract from the Authority's ruling that the advertisement was misleading.
Under today's new law, the Authority can impose fines of between EUR 1,000 and EUR 100,000, according to the serious nature of the offence. If the misleading advertisements publicise products that are harmful to the health and safety of consumers, or threaten the safety of children or adolescents, or take advantage of their natural gullibility, the minimum penalty is EUR 25,000.
The penalities for failure to comply with the Authority's orders have also been completely overhauled. Previously, such cases were dealt with by criminal courts, but from now on, the Authority can directly proceed against an advertiser for non-compliance, issuing an order against it imposing a fine and, in the event of repeat offences, requiring the advertiser to suspend trading for up to a maximum of 30 days.
With regard to its broader investigative powers, it may now request a copy of the advertisement from the advertiser or the proprietor of the medium, even if they object. It also has the power to hand down fines for failure to supply the information or documentation required for its investigations, and in the event that untruthful information is provided, the fines are increased.
One final novelty is that the Authority may also order the Customs and Excise Police (Guardia di Finanza) to carry out inspections to obtain copies of a suspect advertisement using the well-established competition law enforcement procedures.
In order to perform these new tasks, the Authority has decided to institute a special Directorate.
Rome, 29 April 2005