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Download Global luxury brand Louis Vuitton slapped some stores in Jiangsu province with lawsuits claiming 500,000 yuan ($78,500) in compensation from each following a string of crackdowns on counterfeits. The first hearing in the case against a shop in Nanjing Fashion Lady Shopping Plaza was held in Nanjing Intermediate People's Court on July 4. Louis Vuitton said it recently found fake products being sold in the shop, which is in the bustling Xinjiekou commercial area. The company authorized a Beijing-based law firm to send a warning letter to the shopping plaza, requiring it to stop the sales within seven working days. However, the products were still on shelves a month later, leaving the shop and the mall pointing fingers at each other. The shop believed the mall had joint liability because it failed to curb the sales. But the shopping mall emphasized its innocence as it signed an agreement with tenants barring counterfeit products. "We prohibit illegal business and fake goods, and all the shops made their commitments by signing the agreement. So the shop should bear the responsibility alone," said a man from the executive office of the shopping mall, who declined to give his name. Whether the shopping mall assumes responsibility may depend on whether it knows pirated goods are being sold, according to some experts. "A company should inform the mall administrator which shop is selling fake products, because it's sometimes hard for the managers to scrutinize every shop," said Wang Qian, a professor at the Intellectual Property School of the East China University of Political Science and Law. | 
