"浪莎"(Langsha) is a famous sock brand in China. In August 2012, the brand owner Langsha Knitting Co., Ltd. brought seven alleged sellers to court for infringing "浪莎" trademark, asking the defendants to stop infringing and claiming an each compensation of 500,000 yuan. Fengtai District People's Court partially supported the claim of Langsha at the trial of first instance.

In 1998, Langsha applied and obtained "浪莎" trademark and logo in accordance with the law. Recently, the company found seven self-employed operators sold similar goods by using the same trademarks as "浪莎". Langsha said the products which were roughly and inferiorly made deceived consumers and grievously injured Langsha's market reputation. The company asked the court to order seven operators to stop infringement and make a public apology on newspapers; claimed 500,000 yuan as compensation for economic losses and reasonable expenditure respectively.

The defendants argued in the court that the socks sold were stocked from legal channels.   They did not know whether the products constituted infringement and thus did not agree with Langsha's claim.

The court ruled the seven sellers infringed Langsha's right of the exclusive use of registered trademark "浪莎" and ordered them to stop infringement and respectively compensate Langsha 6,000 yuan for economic losses.

(Source: IPR in China)