The Kardashian sisters were the celebrity endorsers for a cosmetic line previously called “Khroma Beauty” that was created and marketed by Boldface....more
6/7/2019
/ Breach of Contract ,
Celebrity Endorsements ,
EU ,
Fashion Branding ,
IP License ,
Kardashians ,
Lanham Act ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Standing ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademarks
On December 28, 2018, both Calvin Klein and the parent company of the department store Saks Fifth Avenue, were sued by Wongab Corporation in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. ...more
On May 3, 2018, Nike filed a lawsuit against Puma in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts accusing Puma of infringing seven of its utility patents related to footwear. In an earlier post on this blog, we...more
12/6/2018
/ Abstract Ideas ,
Affirmative Defenses ,
CLS Bank v Alice Corp ,
Fashion Design ,
Federal Rule 12(b)(6) ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Nike ,
Nonobvious ,
Novelty ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patent-Eligible Subject Matter ,
Patents ,
Puma ,
Section 101 ,
Utility Patents
In 2017, New Jersey based biotech startup Modern Meadow launched Zoa, which it considers “[t]he world’s first bioleather materials brand.” Zoa, a name derived from the Greek term for life, zoi, features products created with...more
Fashion Week San Diego is this weekend—one of the few fashion shows open to the fashion industry and the general public! Fashion shows are exhilarating. As an intellectual property (“IP”) attorney, however, fashion shows...more
The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) released a report on an investigation of China’s acts, policies, and practices related to technology transfer, intellectual property (“IP”), and innovation. The...more
8/1/2018
/ Ad Velorum Property Taxes ,
China ,
Comment Period ,
Counterfeiting ,
Exclusions ,
Fashion Industry ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Requests for Exclusion ,
Section 301 ,
Tariffs ,
Trademarks ,
Trump Administration ,
USTR
On July 2, 2018, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the decision of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board holding that some of the claims relating to artificial glands and various methods of creating them were not...more
Nike filed a lawsuit against Puma on May 3, 2018 in the District Court of Massachusetts accusing Puma of infringing over 40 claims of seven utility patents. The complaint asserts that Puma is using Nike’s Flyknit®, Air®, and...more
6/11/2018
/ Attorney's Fees ,
Enhanced Damages ,
Fashion Design ,
Nike ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patents ,
Permanent Injunctions ,
Popular ,
Puma ,
Utility Patents ,
Willful Infringement
Patent Judgments & Awards -
In another win in a string of victories for Solutran, Inc. in its long-running patent dispute with U.S. Bancorp, a jury in the U.S. District Court in Minnesota found that Solutran was entitled...more
5/3/2018
/ Damages ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Jury Awards ,
Lost Profits ,
Patent Infringement ,
Patent Litigation ,
Patent Royalties ,
Patent Trial and Appeal Board ,
Patents ,
Software ,
US Bancorp
Since May of 2016, Bayer and Monsanto have been working on a deal to combine the two giants. Based on a report released by the Wall Street Journal on Monday, April 9, 2018, the U.S. Department of Justice has just given its...more
4/30/2018
/ Agricultural Sector ,
Bayer ,
Biotechnology ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
EU ,
Farms ,
Genetically Engineered Seed ,
Life Sciences ,
Mergers ,
Monsanto ,
Pharmaceutical Industry
Jasmin Larian, the owner of Cult Gaia, started selling the “Ark” bag in 2013. Since then the Ark bag has been seen on celebrities including Jessica Alba and was even touted as 2017’s “IT” bag. ...more
3/14/2018
/ Acquired Distinctiveness ,
Cease and Desist ,
Concurrent Litigation ,
Counterfeiting ,
Declaratory Relief ,
Fashion Design ,
Fashion Industry ,
Irreparable Harm ,
Misleading Impressions ,
Trade Dress ,
Trademark Infringement
When most people think of cattle, they think of Ferdinand the Bull and their favorite steakhouse. The reality of beef production is far from most consumers’ radar. However, as of 2016, less than 2% of the U.S. population...more
In December, the Second Circuit ruled that My Other Bag (MOB) was not liable for infringing Louis Vuitton’s trademarks and copyrights because MOB’s bags were a parody of the luxury giant....more
1/31/2018
/ Attorney's Fees ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Damages ,
Exceptional Case ,
Fashion Branding ,
Lanham Act ,
Louis Vuitton ,
Octane Fitness v. ICON ,
Parody ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademarks
Edited by Catherine Holland What is a Utility Patent? Utility patents cover a new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter. Design patents are much more common in the fashion industry since design...more
Newcomer to the luxury cosmetics marketplace, Tatcha LLC (“Tatcha”), recently made a splash by filing a trade dress infringement lawsuit in the Northern District of California against Too Faced Cosmetics LLC (“Too Faced”), a...more
Update: U.S. District Court Judge Laura Taylor Swain has awarded Tiffany & Co. $11.1 million in treble profits and $8.25 million in punitive damages. Judge Taylor Swain wrote in her opinion that Costco’s management “displayed...more
8/18/2017
/ Corporate Branding ,
Costco ,
Damages ,
Genericide ,
Jury Trial ,
Lost Profits ,
Punitive Damages ,
Summary Judgment ,
Tiffany and Company ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademarks ,
Treble Damages ,
Unfair Competition
Trademark law is an important form of protection for the fashion and beauty industry. It protects both brand owners and consumers by regulating the registration of brands, or source identifiers, of fashion and beauty...more
7/25/2017
/ Disparagement ,
Fashion Branding ,
Fashion Industry ,
First Amendment ,
Free Speech ,
Government Speech Doctrine ,
Lanham Act ,
Matal v Tam ,
Redskins ,
SCOTUS ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks
On June 1, 2017, noted music and fashion photographer Danny Clinch filed suit in the Southern District of New York in connection with the use of two photographs of famed rapper Tupac Shukar (“Tupac”) on t-shirts. The...more
7/4/2017
/ Accounting ,
Celebrities ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Damages ,
Exclusive Use ,
Fashion Industry ,
Fraud ,
Injunctive Relief ,
IP License ,
Legal Fees ,
Manufacturers ,
Music Industry ,
Name and Likeness ,
Photographs ,
Popular ,
Retailers ,
Right of Publicity ,
Trademarks
Over the last year, there have been some significant trademark and copyright cases in the fashion industry. Below are summaries of recent cases all brand owners should know and understand. These cases touch on important...more
6/9/2017
/ Brand ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Copyrightable Subject Matter ,
Disparagement ,
Fashion Branding ,
Fashion Industry ,
First Amendment ,
International Trade Commission (ITC) ,
Lee v Tam ,
Louis Vuitton ,
Paintings Sculptures and Engravings ,
Parody ,
Punitive Damages ,
SCOTUS ,
Secondary Meaning ,
Star Athletica v Varsity Brands ,
Tiffany and Company ,
Trade Dress ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ,
Trademarks ,
Uniforms
Does the use of Google AdWords amount to the advertising, promoting, marketing, or offering for sale of goods covered by a registered trademark? Tipsy Elves, LLC. vs. Ugly Christmas Sweater, Inc. is the latest in a string of...more
6/8/2017
/ AdWords ,
Consumer Confusion ,
Deceptive Intent ,
False Advertising ,
Fashion Industry ,
Google ,
Keyword Advertising ,
Lanham Act ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademarks ,
Young Lawyers
Buscemi, LLC (“Buscemi”) filed for a design patent on June 2, 2016. In March 2017, while the patent application was pending, Buscemi alleges that it became aware that Styleline Studios International and JSL Studio...more
In the fashion and beauty world, the copying of higher-priced brands is widespread. While in fashion, the term for copies of designer products is “knockoffs,” in beauty, the term is “dupes.” Whether it is a colloquial use of...more
On April 4, 2017, the Ninth Circuit ruled that Urban Outfitters and Century 21 (collectively “Urban”) were liable for willful infringement of a copyrighted fabric design owned by Unicolors Inc. Unicolors is a Los Angeles...more
On March 24, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that the term “red gold” may not be a generic term for jewelry and watches, and thus, may serve as a trademark. Specifically, the Ninth Circuit found...more
4/12/2017
/ Appeals ,
Declaration ,
Evidence ,
Fashion Branding ,
Fashion Industry ,
Generic ,
Jury Trial ,
Louis Vuitton ,
Remand ,
Trade Associations ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademarks ,
Triable Issue of Fact
On March 31, 2017, Forever 21 was sued by Puma over its “Fenty” line of shoes. The “Fenty” label has become popular, in part, due to the influence of music artist, Rihanna as the label’s brand ambassador. In its complaint,...more