West Virginia Code 60-9-8 – General enforcement provisions
(a) This article shall be enforced by the State Tax Commissioner and the Alcohol Beverage Control Commissioner and for the purpose of enforcing this article, the commissioners may request information from any state agency, Constitutional officer or local agency and, notwithstanding the provisions of section five-d, article ten, chapter eleven of this code or any other provision of this code, may share information with, and request information from, any federal agency and any agency or Constitutional officer of this or any other state or any local agency thereof.
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 60-9-8
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. Source: U.S. Courts
- Person: means and includes any individual, firm, association, company, partnership, corporation, joint-stock company, club, agency, syndicate, municipal corporation or other political subdivision of this state, trust, receiver, trustee, fiduciary or conservator, and when used in connection with any penalties imposed by this article, means and includes officers, directors, trustees or members of any firm, copartnership, association, corporation, trust or any other unit acting as a group. See West Virginia Code 60-9-1
- State: when applied to a part of the United States and not restricted by the context, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" also include the said district and territories. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
(b) A person that acquires, holds, owns, possesses, transports in or imports into this state cigarettes that are subject to this article shall, with respect to the cigarettes, maintain and keep all records required pursuant to article seventeen, chapter eleven of this code.
(c) In addition to any other remedy provided by law, any person may bring an action for appropriate injunctive or other equitable relief for a violation of this article; actual damages, if any, sustained by reason of the violation; and, as determined by the court, interest on the damages from the date of complaint, taxable costs, and reasonable attorney's fees. If the trier of fact finds that the violation is flagrant, it may increase recovery to an amount not in excess of three times the actual damages sustained by reason of the violation.