On July 27, 2017, Crowell & Moring will be presenting a webinar hosted by the United States Fashion Industry Association on the hottest IP Supreme Court decisions from 2017 that will affect the fashion and retail industries. Anne Li and Preetha Chakrabarti of Crowell will be discussing Star Athletica, LLC v. Varsity Brands, Inc. and
A-F-F-I-R-M-E-D! The Supreme Court Upholds Copyright Protection for Cheerleading Uniform Designs
UPDATE to our September 2015 post
On March 22, 2017, a 6-2 Supreme Court found Varsity Brands’ designs on cheerleading uniforms to be copyrightable, holding that “an artistic feature of the design of a useful article is eligible for copyright protection if the feature (1) can be perceived as a two- or three-dimensional work of art separate from the useful article and (2) would qualify as a protectable pictorial, graphic, or sculptural work—either on its own or fixed in some other tangible medium of expression—if it were imagined separately from the useful article into which it is incorporated.” See Star Athletica, LLC. v. Varsity Brands, Inc., 580 U.S. __ (2017) (No. 15-866), Op. at 1-2. In doing so, the Court affirmed the Sixth’s Circuit decision below.