In January 2024, UNIQLO CO., LTD. (UNIQLO) announced that it had filed a lawsuit before the Tokyo District Court against Roadget Business Pte. Ltd., Fashion Choice Pte. Ltd., and SHEIN Japan Co., Ltd. (collectively, SHEIN Parties). UNIQLO alleges that the SHEIN Parties have infringed Japan’s Unfair Competition Prevention Act by selling dupes of UNIQLO’s popular round mini shoulder bag, which went viral on TikTok last year due to its minimalistic, water-repellent exterior and ability to hold a surprisingly large volume of products for its size. UNIQLO is demanding that the SHEIN parties cease s ..read more

In many jurisdictions, it is customary for claimed features of a design to be depicted in solid lines while disclaimed features of a design are shown in broken lines. In Australia, unless parts of the product are separable, a design will be read as being the overall article represented and the parts with broken lines are not completely disregarded. Indeed, in Wynnes Patent and Trade Marks Attorneys Pty Ltd v Wamlez Pty Ltd [2023] ADO 3, the Delegate concluded that the overall design “Driver bit for fastener” (Design) represented below should be considered, regardless of the line styles adopted ..read more

Recently, several fashion houses were raided by European Union antitrust regulators based on concerns that these companies may have violated laws against cartels and restrictive business practices. Relatedly, in the United States, the current administration has been very aggressive in its enforcement of antitrust laws with a new “Won’t Back Down” approach towards litigation and increased investigative activity. The current landscape should serve as a reminder why it’s important to, first and foremost, ensure compliance with the antitrust laws around the world, but also to be prepared should th ..read more

Amidst a sudden increase in paid-for posts that went viral for dubious products and services, France has taken a significant step toward the regulation of influencer communication. The Act no. 2023-451 (Influencers Act), which came into effect on 9 June 2023, aims not only to protect consumers but also to support the influencers, in order to foster the healthy growth of this ecosystem. France is now the first European Union (EU) country to implement a thorough framework regulating commercial influence. Background Information Digital influencers have changed the way companies can promote their ..read more

“Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the why we live, what is happening.” Coco Chanel In this edition of Fashion Law, we cover a range of topics which are having an impact on businesses and consumers in the fashion and luxury products sector worldwide. From the Russian-Ukrainian war which continues, through to new EU and UK brand distribution rules, we look at the key developments and answer the most commonly asked questions. We also take a closer look at the rise of digital payments, social media influencer ..read more

Over the past decade, influence marketing has changed the way advertising is handled by companies. Influencers have entered the marketing world by leveraging massive followings on social media platforms, and brands have recognised the value of the new category of advertising professionals. Even though the use of influencers has become a mainstay of advertising, French legislation has yet to meet this evolution, resulting in an often opaque legal framework. The broad spread-out provisions applicable to influencers also generate difficulties in understanding influencers legal status, in particul ..read more

As an update to K&L Gates’ previous alerts of 24 February and 25 February, U.S. President Joe Biden issued executive orders (EOs) last week imposing additional sanctions against Russia. The order, EO 14068, issued on 11 March 2022, restricts: exports of luxury goods to Russia and Belarus, U.S. imports of Russian alcohol, seafood, and diamonds, and the supply of U.S. dollar-denominated banknotes to Russia and the Russian Government worldwide. This alert describes these new developments in more detail. LUXURY EXPORTS, RUSSIAN IMPORTS, AND RESTRICTIONS ON U.S. BANKNOTES EO 14068 contains th ..read more

K&L Gates is proud to be hosting, as part of the PayPal Melbourne Fashion Festival, its annual fashion law seminar. As an Official Supporting Partner of the 2022 Festival, this year our session will cover recent changes to the Australian Designs Act and how these changes will assist fashion designers in protecting their valuable designs. In September 2021, the Designs Amendment (Advisory Council on Intellectual Property Response) Bill 2020 received Royal Assent. The Act will bring in important changes to the Australian designs law. Join K&L Gates’ fashion law team Jonathan Feder (Partn ..read more

In a decision closely watched by the visual arts community and content creators alike, the U.S. Supreme Court held on May 19, 2023, that pop artist Andy Warhol’s orange silkscreen portrait of the musician Prince (“Orange Prince”), adapted from photographer Lynn Goldsmith’s original photograph of Prince, was not “fair use” under copyright law. Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. v. Goldsmith, 598 U.S. _ (2023). Justice Sotomayor authored the 7-2 majority opinion affirming the Second Circuit’s holding that the first fair use factor, “the purpose and character of the use”, weighed ag ..read more

The European Commission (“EC” or “Commission”) announced this week that it has initiated unannounced inspections of—and issued formal requests for information from—multiple companies in the fashion industry in several European Union member states. Such raids and requests are the first steps in the Commission’s now-disclosed investigation into potential anticompetitive conduct in the fashion industry, specifically as to whether there have been violations of the cartel prohibition provision of Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and/or Article 53 of the European Ec ..read more