What is US trade dress law and how does it apply to the world of fashion?

Rebecca Field and Lee Curtis of HGF interview Professor Alexandra Roberts of Northeastern University in Boston on US trade dress law. What is trade dress? How can it be infringed? How does trade dress apply to the world of fashion?Timestamps:4:28 - Can you explain what US trade dress is designed to protect? Do you have to register trade dress in the US to get protection?10:18 - Could you explain how you infringe US trade dress?12:14 - Where did trade dress come from and was it or is it particularly apt for any particular industry?15:24 - Are there any particularly interesting cases on US trade dress on fashion items

Rebecca Field and Lee Curtis discuss the importance of personal names in the world of fashion and a recent decision of the CJEU concerning the registration of a trade mark relating to French fashion designer Jean-Charles de Castelbajac. Did the use of the name JC de CASTELBAJAC post-registration, after the sale of the underlying business, lead to a trademark registration for the name to be invalidated on the basis of deceptiveness?  Is this decision contrary to the well-known decision relating to the name ELIZABETH EMANUEL, or does it build on that earlier decision?Timestamps:2:38 - Why is the issue of designer names and trade marks an issue particularly pertinent to the world of fashion?4:44 - What was the key case on the issue?12:08 - Most recent case on this subject16:21- Is the JC/DC case contrary to the decision in the ELIZABETH EMANUEL case?

Rebecca Field and Lee Curtis discuss the concept of ‘overall impression’ in registered design law in the United Kingdom and European Union. Rebecca and Lee also discuss where a claimant was successful in an action for registered design infringement in a fashion case and how overall impression came into play.Timestamps:1:34 – The concept of overall impression in UK and EU registered design law?7:01 - Where does overall impression come into play with regards the validity of UK and EU registered designs9:31 - Can you discuss a case where a registrant was successful in a registered design claim for an item of fashion in the UK

Rebecca Field and Lee Curtis interview Theo Barclay of 4 New Square, who was the successful lead counsel for Dryrobe Limited, in the recent decision of the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court (IPEC) concerning trade mark infringement and passing off claims by Dryrobe Limited against Caesr Group Limited (trading as D-Robe Outdoors) and counterclaims by Caeser Group based on descriptiveness, genericism and non-use. The case is particularly interesting as it is one of the few UK trade mark cases concerning genericism and it concerns an item of fashion.

Rebecca Field and Lee Curtis discuss the impact of Generative AI on online search and associated legal issues. The online search market has been stable for over twenty years. Will Generative AI change the way online search works and looks, and what are the implications for brand and trade mark owners?Timestamps:2:17 The impact of AI online search with a focus on fashion retailers4:21 - The way search is and was conducted raised a number of legal issues and what were they?5:56 - AI and change6:55 - Why are these changes important?8:19 - Where could the rise of GEO be particularly important in the word of fashion products?

Overview: Rebecca Field and Lee Curtis interview their HGF colleague Rachel Platts about the UKIPO’s consultation on proposed changes to UK design law and their impact on fashion design. We touch on possible changes to the UK design examination system, searches, the possible introduction of opposition procedures and dealing with bad faith filings. We also discuss important possible changes to disclosure rules and touch on copyright protection for fashion designs.Timestamps:2:29 introduction to Rachel3:00 discussion of the design consultation4:28 changes to the searching and examination system for registered designs.8:52 Simplification of the present system relating to unregistered design rights

Rebecca Field and Lee Curtis discuss the recent Opinion from Advocate General Emiliou in the Deity Shoes S.L. case. The case concerns whether fashion designs need ‘intellectual effort’ to benefit from EU Registered and Unregistered design protection and whether fashion trends impact the designer's freedom when considering the validity of designs.Timestamps:2:13 can you provide some background on the Deity Shoes dispute?4:25 The first core issue: How did the Advocate General answer this key point?8:18 The second core issue: The designer’s freedom in developing the design

Rebecca Field and Lee Curtis interview barrister Simon Malynicz KC of Hogarth Chambers on the recent decision of the UK Supreme Court in the Iconix vs Dream Pairs case.  We discuss the concept of post-sale confusion in the world of trade marks and as ever have a fashion spin.Timestamps:3:14 - Summary of the Iconix case10:45 - Has the Supreme Court helped define the limits of post-sale confusion?12:30 - Do you think post-sale confusion is a particular issue in the world of fashion?14:30 - Have there been any other recent cases in the world of fashion in the United Kingdom which dealt with the concept of post-sale confusion?17:30 - The differences in applying confusion with regard to trade mark infringement

Rebecca Field and Lee Curtis interview barristers Andrew Norris KC and Becky Knott of Hogarth Chambers on the recent Sonia Edwards vs Boohoo design case. We also touch on the well-known Rihanna case and other notable fashion IP cases.Timestamps:3.34 - Introduction to Andrew and Becky4:22 - You acted for Boohoo in that case. Could you, Becky provide a brief summary of the case and the issues involved?6:28 – issue of copying. Andrew explains this and how it came up in the Edwards case.9:40 - Could you provide our listeners with some comments on this aspect of the case?14:58 - For our listeners who are not aware of that case, can you explain your role, the background to the case, and some of the key takeaways of the Topshop case18:34 -What fashion IP case have you found the most interesting?

Rebecca Field and Lee Curtis interview their HGF colleagues Susanne Bilderbeek and Olivia Petter on smell-a-like perfumes and compare and contrast UK, Benelux and German trade mark and copyright case law on perfume comparison lists and smell-a-like perfumes.Timestaps:4:54 So-called smell-alike perfumes case law8:40 Smell-alike perfumes and German case law15:00 Is there any UK case law on this