cutting edge footnotes in the online world

A cease and desist order is a legal request to halt and suspend a specific activity, and is also used as a way to threaten legal action if the order is not fulfilled. A cease and desist order is also known as a cease and desist letter (Waldorf Rechtsanwälte Abmahnung) , because this is how they are carried out and sent to the order recipient.
There are a large range of situations that may require a cease and desist letter, with legal systems in different jurisdiction affecting how cease and desist notices are carried out. However, there are some similarities to how cease and desist orders are carried out around the world, with some relatively common situations prompting cease and desist measures. Some of the most common types of behaviour that often prompt these orders include harassment, stalking, patent infringement, terms of service violations, libel and slander, trademark infringement, and copyright infringement.

Along with differences in the behaviour prompting legal action, there are also a number of differences in terms of the authority that sends the cease and desist order. Depending on the jurisdiction of operation, cease and desist letters can be sent out either by the law courts or particular administrative agencies. For example, some governments around the world have the ability to send out cease and desist orders in the case of fraudulent securities, banking practices, and other security reasons. If the recipient of these orders does not request a hearing about these matters, the authority in question may be able to enforce the action in a court of law. Cease and desist orders can also be sent out by law court judges, with this type of order meant to provide a permanent injunction against an activity that is deemed to be illegal.

While cease and desist orders can be sent out for a wide range of different reasons, many of them fall into two major categories. The first category is connected with harassment in one form or another, either commercial harassment by a collection agency or personal harassment by an individual person. The other major category of activity that often ends in cease and desist orders is connected with the infringement of commercial interests, such as trademark infringement, copyright infringement, or patent infringement. Terms of service violations are also linked to this kind of infringement, and are another major type of behaviour that can prompt legal cease and desist action.