In Nokia Corporation v Her Majesty’s Commissioners of Revenue & Customs [2009] EWHC 1903 (Ch), the Chancery Court Judge (CCJ), in an appeal for judicial review from the Queen’s Bench Division, Administrative Court, considered the decision by the Commissioner of Revenue and Customs, to no longer detain a consignment of mobile phones which Nokia claims are counterfeit.

In July 2008, Her Majesty’s Commissioners of Revenue & Customs (HMRC) stopped a consignment of goods from Hong Kong to Colombia, comprising 400 mobile phones, batteries, manuals, boxes and hand free kits, each of which bore NOKIA trade marks. HMRC sent samples to Nokia, who determined they were counterfeit. Nokia requested that the HMRC detain these goods pursuant to its powers under the Council Regulation 1383/03 (“the Counterfeit Goods Regulation”). HMRC argued that the goods were not counterfeit within the meaning of the Regulation, unless they were to be diverted into the EU market, for which there was no evidence. The only avenue open to Nokia was to pursue an infringement of Nokia’s intellectual property under national law.