Author: Reyyan Mansoor, Middlesex University, Dubai
To the Point
Fashion law encompasses that domain of law dealing with issues and concepts relating to clothing items, fashion and more. It further breaks down to aspects of intellectual property, global interactions, working conditions and consumer protection, among others. It has the capacity to protect enterprises specializing in the field while also giving them the parameters to which they can be held liable and other defining characteristics.
Use of Legal Jargon
As previously mentioned, fashion law aims to protect retailers and designers by giving them the rights to own and protect their own creations. It also gives the scope of liability to other enterprises when it comes to creating their own items and apparel. Designers and retailers use patents, trademarks and copyright to protect their products and now, their brands. The industry has fallen under various other domains of law, like business law and intellectual property law, but now various aspects have been clubbed into this evolving domain.
Enterprises aim to create new trends and apparel that appeals to the general public, with certain luxury brands, like Gucci or Louis Vuitton, even catering to specific items like formal wear or fashion accessories. In order to protect these articles from being copied or stolen by other brands, trademarks, patents and copyright have become a vital necessity.
When a company gains a trademark for their brand, it associates all products and services produced by that specific company as unique and original. Patents usually come in the various forms, one of which is a design patent, which protects the unique appearance of the innovations they create for their brand, and copyright to protect the original prints or artwork, used by the brand on their articles but not the actual piece of apparel itself.
The Proof
With the growth of the internet and the evolution of fashion law, various laws have been curated for the purpose of defining the rights and responsibilities of designers, producers and consumers.
● As discussed earlier, intellectual property law takes an important role in the legal domain of fashion law; taking the form of trademarks, patents, copyright, etc.
● When brands expand globally, in terms of shipping, franchising or licensing, contracts are formed that outline their responsibilities and obligations like shipping guidelines, quality control and sell-return policies. Additionally, when brands open stores in other countries, they take part in franchising or licensing in order to allow those companies to use their brands in their stories.
● In order to protect consumers, when articles are produced and sold to consumers, each article carries a tag attached to the clothing indicating aspects like its materials and country of origin.
● Most brands have large warehouses or factories where they produce these fashion articles. Labor laws globally dictate the requirements for a safe working environment, fair wages and employee service. This sector is often cited when it comes to the production of fast fashion articles often utilizing under-paid and over-working hours.
● This era of sustainability expands to all sectors including this one, where companies need to accurately depict their materials as well as their production methods, especially if the enterprise claims to be environmentally sustainable.
Abstract
The fashion world has always been about creating a statement and representing cultures from around the world. Today, with the evolution of the internet comes the evolution of the fashion industry expanding into the legal sphere with domains like intellectual property, business, international trade law and employment law becoming sectors under fashion law. Additionally, the fashion industry has grown from just companies and enterprises to online platforms and individuals have taken to social media to promote products or even just their style and fashion sense.
Case Law
● Lululemon v Calvin Klein (2012)
○ The claimants Lululemon sued the defendants Calvin Klein claiming patent infringement.
○ The facts follow that the defendants copied the exact same design on their ‘Performance’ line that the claimants themselves had on their ‘Astro’ line citing the same pattern and form of the waistband.
○ Another aspect analyzed during the case was the overall pricing of the items where Calvin Klein was, in comparison, a lot cheaper than the original product.
○ The case was ultimately settled outside of court and Lululemon filed for a dismissal for their legal claims against Calvin Klein.
● Independent Designers v Shein (2023)
○ Independent designers sued Shein for copying their exact designs on their items of apparel.
○ They claimed that they used an Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithm to monitor new and potentially more profitable trends and copied the designs to sell for cheaper on their own platforms.
○ While the claims were ultimately dropped in a joint dismissal, this case dealt with the designs of clothing items being copied. These matters are said to often be difficult to take to court owing to the United State’s (US) useful article doctrine. It states that those apparel items that carry an utilitarian or basic function cannot be copyrighted, making just clothes difficult to copyright. However, any personal and unique designs or patterns were eligible for copyright claims.
● H&M v Forever 21 (2015)
○ H&M made a copyright claim against Forever 21 citing how the defendants infringed on the claimants intellectual property by making an exact replica of a tote bag originally created by H&M. The claimants claimed trade dress infringement and copyright infringement.
○ A factor to consider was that the defendant’s bag was cheaper than the claimants. Additionally, the claimants argued that Forever 21 had a history of similar cases where they copied the designs of other brands for their own products and sold them in stores.
○ The case was eventually settled outside of court.
Conclusion
Fashion law is an emerging field of law that aims to protect retailers and designers for their own work and also provides the scope of liability to other companies when creating their own products and apparel. This domain of law delves into various topics including intellectual property law, business law as well as labour law. As seen with the relevant case law, clothing items and apparel are often difficult to make a case for – as seen with the U.S. useful article doctrine which separates what can be considered a claim for copyright and what’s considered the basic function of an item. Aspects like designs, patterns and even certain specific fabric can be protected under a brand though the margin for what is considered original and unique has specific requirements that it needs to adhere to. Even today, this domain of law is still evolving especially with the use of AI algorithms and fast fashion.
FAQ’S
1. What exactly is fashion law?
Fashion law aims to protect designers and brands for their own work. It gives them certain rights and responsibilities as well as different means in order to protect their creations and innovations from being copied by other brands and companies.
2. Why has it become more prevalent in recent times?
With the growth of fast fashion and artificial intelligence, brands need a means to protect their work from being copied and used by other companies. An example can be with the company Shein who were originally sued by multiple independent designers for copying their work and selling it on their platform at a much cheaper rate than the original infringing on design patents and copyright claims.
3. Have there been any cases where fashion law has been used?
There have been multiple instances where fashion law has come into play including cases such as Independent Designers v Shein (2015) as well as Lululemon v Calvin Klein (2012).
