Legal Definitions - reverse passing off

Reverse passing off is a specific type of unfair competition that occurs when a business or individual takes the goods or services created by another party, removes or obscures the original creator's identifying marks (such as brand names, logos, or designer credits), and then presents those goods or services as their own.

Unlike traditional "passing off," where someone tries to make their products look like a more reputable competitor's, reverse passing off involves claiming credit for someone else's genuine work or product. The goal is often to benefit from another's innovation, reputation, or effort without proper attribution or compensation.

• Example 1: Product Manufacturing

  A small, independent company develops a revolutionary new type of biodegradable packaging material, which quickly gains industry recognition for its innovative design and environmental benefits. A larger competitor purchases samples of this packaging, carefully removes all of the original company's branding and patent markings, and then begins manufacturing and marketing the identical material under its own brand, claiming it as their proprietary invention.

  This illustrates reverse passing off because the larger competitor is taking a product genuinely created by another company, stripping it of its true origin, and presenting it to the market as its own original creation to gain an unfair advantage.

• Example 2: Digital Content/Software

  An independent software developer creates a unique and highly functional productivity application for desktop computers. A larger tech company downloads this application, modifies the user interface slightly to remove the original developer's branding and copyright notices, and then re-releases the software through its own distribution channels, promoting it as a new product developed by its internal team.

  Here, reverse passing off occurs because the tech company is appropriating the independent developer's software, erasing its true authorship, and falsely claiming it as their own creation to leverage their larger market presence.

• Example 3: Creative Design Services

  A freelance graphic designer is commissioned to create a distinctive logo and brand identity for a new startup. After the project is completed and the designs are delivered, the startup's marketing director later presents the logo and branding materials at an industry conference, claiming that their in-house design team developed the entire identity from scratch, without any mention or credit to the original freelance designer.

  This is an instance of reverse passing off because the startup is taking the creative work of the freelance designer, removing the designer's rightful attribution, and falsely representing it as the product of their own internal efforts to enhance their reputation.