EL SALVADOR Law and Practice Contributed by: Marcela Mancia, IDEAS IP
sumer Protection Defence oversees inspections and has the power to sanction individuals or companies in the event of infringement of any regulation. They are not only in charge of advertising issues, but also carry out inspections regarding the use, commercialisation and sale of products for human consumption. If the special commission issues a ruling, they admit an appeal; once the ruling is issued, there can be no additional appeal. 1.8 Private Right of Action for Consumers Theoretically, anyone can file a complaint before the Consumer Protection Authority, the Commission of the Self-Regulation of Advertisements, the courts or any other entity to challenge advertising practices, depending on the issue. Similarly, anyone can file a complaint before the Consumer Protection Authority regarding the publicity or advertisement of goods and services. The complaint will be heard within five days depending on the documents and proof provided. Regarding official complaints where the facts are clearly determined (ie, have been recorded by the Consumer Protection Authority, proven through the actions of other institutions, recognised by the offend - er, recorded in administrative records, etc), the file may be processed in a simplified procedure. Once the procedure has been started, the court will summon the supplier to submit their defence in writ - ing within a period of five days starting from the day after the notification was received. Upon the expira - tion of that term, the trial will be opened for eight days regardless of whether the supplier has appeared or not. During the trial period, the parties may present and request evidence they deem appropriate. The court must ex officio provide for the taking of evidence it deems appropriate at any time during the procedure, allowing the interested parties to intervene. Evidence recognised under common law can be admitted when applicable, and with sufficient scien - tific backing. Any such evidence will be appraised according to the rules of sound criticism. Once the proceedings have concluded, the court will issue a resolution within a maximum of ten days.
Complaints may also be filed before the Advertising Self-Regulatory Commission, but must be submitted in writing and filed along with complete information on the advertising campaign in question, including the advertising media and the alleged violations along with the evidence deemed necessary to support the claim. The concerned parties must appear at the hearing, and the Commission must carry out the necessary procedures and investigations. All rulings must be made in writing based on the rules of the Advertis - ing Self-Regulation Code. Possible sanctions include immediate suspension of the advert and public or private reprimands for the sanctioned entity. Once the ruling has been issued, no additional appeal is possible. Theoretically, anyone can file a complaint in relation to publicity or advertisement practices before entities such as the Ministry of Health, the Superintendence of Sanitary Regulation and the courts, among others, depending on the nature of the complaint. 1.9 Regulatory and Legal Trends The most relevant cases involve clothing, footwear and accessory stores, restaurants, supermarkets and beauty salons that have failed to detail the terms and conditions of promotions. Often, advertisers indicate the start date, but not the end date, of promotions or erroneously leave discount price tags on products; upon reaching the checkout, the consumer may be informed that the promotion has ended such that they are charged the regular price. Pharmacies often announce the date of discounts on medications, cosmetics and other products, but do not clarify the end time of the promotion. Some phar - macies only apply the discount from 6am to 12pm, or for some other period spanning several hours, but do not make this entirely clear in their advertisements. In all of the foregoing cases, the entities concerned are subject to fines and must comply with the authori - ties’ provisions.
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