News & Analysis as of

Copyright Utilitarian Function

A Copyright is an exclusive legal right granted to the creator of an original work to license, copy, sell, distribute, or otherwise exploit the work for his or her own benefit.
Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox P.L.L.C.

MarkIt to Market® - May 2020: Banana and Pencil: A Tale of Two Circuits

Three years ago, the Supreme Court announced a seemingly simple separability test for determining whether features of a useful article are eligible for copyright protection in the landmark decision Star Athletica v. Varsity...more

Foley Hoag LLP - Making Your Mark

Star Athletica and the Expansion of Useful Article Protection: Copyright Office Permits Registration of Automotive Floor Liner

The Supreme Court’s decision in Star Athletica v. Varsity Brands established a new and simplified test for determining whether useful articles can obtain copyright protection. Many have wondered, in the year since it was...more

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

Star Athletica Leaves Parties Weeping in Copyright Dispute over Tear Drop Design

Dorsey & Whitney LLP on

In Star Athletica v. Varsity Brands, the U.S. Supreme Court clarified the proper test for determining when a useful article is subject to copyright protection. That new standard was recently brought to bear in JetMax Limited...more

McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP

Practice Tips for Copyright Owners in the Wake of Star Athletica v. Varsity Brands

After considering almost a year’s worth of substantive briefing (including fifteen separate amicus briefs), oral argument, at least ten distinct tests employed in courts throughout the country, as well as numerous novel tests...more

Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP

Fashion and Intellectual Property: Many Options to Protect Your Design, But No One-Stop Shop

Imagine you’re a fashion designer with a unique clothing design. As with any other business, you wish to protect your intellectual property through the standard combination of patents, trademarks, and copyrights. Sounds...more

Foley & Lardner LLP

You’ve Gotta Keep ‘Em Separated

Foley & Lardner LLP on

The US Supreme Court’s ruling in Star Athletica v Varsity Brands provides a path to copyrightability for pictorial or graphical elements of clothing designs and useful articles. Laura Ganoza and Julie McGinnis of Foley &...more

McDermott Will & Emery

Give Me an E: Cheerleading Uniform Designs Eligible for Copyright Protection

McDermott Will & Emery on

In a 6–2 decision authored by Justice Thomas, the Supreme Court of the United States provided guidance as to whether aesthetic designs of a cheerleading uniform, such as stripes, chevrons, zigzags and color blocks, are...more

Kilpatrick

Something for Designers to (Maybe) Cheer About: Star Athletica v. Varsity Brands

Kilpatrick on

Historically, fashion designers, as well as other designers whose creative efforts are incorporated into useful/functional articles like clothing, shoes, and furniture, have struggled successfully to assert copyright...more

Holland & Knight LLP

Separating Art from Function: Supreme Court Creates Copyright Test for Designs

Holland & Knight LLP on

In a landmark 6-2 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court resolved "widespread disagreement" among lower courts and held that the artistic elements in a functional article ­– such as the cheerleading uniform at issue in this case –...more

Proskauer - New England IP Blog

Cheerleader Uniform Designs Protectable Under Copyright Act

The Supreme Court recently held in Star Athletica, L.L.C. v. Varsity Brands, Inc., that the designs on certain cheerleader uniforms may be protected copyrights. The 6-2 decision clarified the test to be applied when...more

Foley Hoag LLP - Making Your Mark

Supreme Court Establishes Test for Copyrightability of Two-Dimensional Designs Incorporated Into Useful Articles in Star Athletica...

On March 22, 2017, the Supreme Court established a test for determining whether a design that is incorporated into a useful article is entitled to copyright protection. In its much-awaited opinion in Star Athletica, L.L.C. v....more

Goodwin

Supreme Court Broadens Copyright Eligibility For Design Elements, Including Artwork On Clothing

Goodwin on

Summary - In Star Athletica, LLC v. Varsity Brands, Inc., 580 U.S. ___ (2017), the Supreme Court clarified the test for whether artistic features of a useful article are separable and therefore copyright eligible. The...more

K&L Gates LLP

Sis-Boom-Bah: U.S. Supreme Court Rules That Cheerleader Uniform Design Elements May Be Eligible for Copyright Protection

K&L Gates LLP on

In a decision that clarifies one controversial aspect of copyright and fashion law, the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that certain design elements of cheerleader uniforms may be eligible for copyright protection. The...more

Knobbe Martens

U.S. Supreme Court Says That Lines, Chevrons, and Colorful Shapes on Cheerleader Uniforms Are Copyrightable

Knobbe Martens on

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday, March 22, 2017, issued their opinion on Star Athletica v. Varsity Brands. The Court affirmed the 6th Circuit, holding that the lines, chevrons, and colorful shapes of Varsity’s...more

Knobbe Martens

Chevrons, Stripes, Cheerleaders, and Copyright: The Supreme Court Issues Opinion in Star Athletica v. Varsity Brands

Knobbe Martens on

The U.S. Supreme Court issued their opinion on Star Athletica v. Varsity Brands on Wednesday, March 22. Should fashion designers rejoice or be fearful? That depends. Designers who repeatedly have original fashion designs...more

Mintz - Trademark & Copyright Viewpoints

Let’s Go, Big ©! Let’s Go! U.S. Supreme Court Backs Copyright Protection for Cheerleading Uniforms

In a decision that may have broader implications in the U.S. fashion industry, the U.S. Supreme Court in Star Athletica, L.L.C. v. Varsity Brands, Inc. (No. 15-866) ruled that the decorative elements on a cheerleading uniform...more

Jones Day

Decision Cheered by Some, as Supreme Court Clarifies Useful Articles Copyright Protection

Jones Day on

In a decision likely to affect the fashion and design industries, on March 22, 2017, the United States Supreme Court clarified the test for determining when a design feature incorporated into a "useful article" (such as...more

Morrison & Foerster LLP

Supreme Court Rules Cheerleading Uniform Designs Are Copyrightable

On March 22, 2017, the Supreme Court held in Star Athletica, LLC v. Varsity Brands, Inc. that design elements of cheerleading uniforms may be protected under the Copyright Act. The 6-2 decision, written by Justice Thomas,...more

Proskauer Rose LLP

Supreme Court Finds Cheerleading Uniform Designs Copyrightable

Proskauer Rose LLP on

On March 22, 2017, the Supreme Court held in Star Athletica, LLC v. Varsity Brands, Inc. that designs on cheerleading uniforms may be protectable under the Copyright Act. The Court's 6-2 decision, clarifying the...more

Locke Lord LLP

SCOTUS Finds Cheerleader Designs Copyrightable

Locke Lord LLP on

In a highly anticipated decision, the Supreme Court of the United States held on March 22, 2017 that the “pictorial, graphic or sculptural features” of the “design of a useful article” can be protected by copyright under...more

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP

Supreme Court Decides Star Athletica, L.L.C. v. Varsity Brands, Inc.

On March 22, 2017, the Supreme Court of the United States decided Star Athletica, L.L.C. v. Varsity Brands, Inc., No. 15-866, holding that artistic designs on cheerleading uniforms were eligible for copyright protection. ...more

Womble Bond Dickinson

“Knock-Offs” Beware: SCOTUS Makes a Fashion-Forward Decision

Womble Bond Dickinson on

The U.S. Supreme Court has settled the closely watched Varsity Brands Inc. et al. v. Star Athletica LLC copyright dispute, holding that cheerleading outfits contain distinct design elements that allow for copyright ownership....more

Bracewell LLP

Supreme Court Clarifies Copyright Protection for Artistic Features in Clothing

Bracewell LLP on

On March 22, 2017, the Supreme Court held that a two- or three-dimensional work of art on a useful article, such as clothing, is protectable under copyright law if: (1) the work of art can be perceived as separate from the...more

Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP

Hip, Hip, Hooray for Copyrightable Decorative Elements

After months of standing on the sidelines of the most closely watched case impacting the fashion industry in recent years, legal practitioners and fashion designers now have a framework for protecting decorative elements of...more

Fish & Richardson

Hip Hip Hooray! Supreme Court Upholds Copyright Protection for Cheerleader Uniforms

Fish & Richardson on

On March 22, 2017, the Supreme Court, in a 6-2 opinion by Justice Thomas, affirmed the Sixth Circuit’s holding that the two-dimensional graphic designs on Varsity Brands’ cheerleading uniforms are eligible for copyright...more

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