Fashion Law

We have more than 20 years’ experience in the Fashion Industry, providing legal counsel to designers, labels, agencies and models and other fashion businesses. We advise our fashion clients on all aspects of every phase of a product’s life cycle, from creation of a design through marketing and distribution. We create appropriate legal strategies that enable our clients to define, manage and expand their brands in the digital age.

Our expertise includes:

Protecting Designers

• Trademarks

  • Many designers waste time and money attempting to register their own trademark when they do not understand the trademark process

  • These futile attempts usually result in contacting an attorney and starting the process again only to expend additional funds

  • We work hard to get the right trademark registration for our fashion clients so they can build their brand without question

• Copyrights

  • A common infringement in the fashion industry occurs where prints on fabrics are unlawfully copied

  • Designers can register artwork and prints that are displayed on their fabric but in most instances will not be able to register the actual design

  • We know how to navigate through important copyright matters for our fashion clients

• Trade/Commercial Secrets

  • Whether it is source of packaging materials, an unauthorized photo of a design, marketing strategies and/or other trade secrets, the fast pace of the fashion industry can cause important information to get into the wrong hands and give others a competitive advantage

  • We work with designers to anticipate and address potential trade and commercial secret problems and offer our fashion clients with legal solutions to avoid future problems in this area

Counterfeit Investigation, Defense & Prosecution

• Designers spend thousands of dollars to create and register their trademarks and build their brands

• Our lawyers understand the financial consequences of the counterfeit market. We also understand that many small business retailers are unaware that posting certain images or making references to brand names when selling their product is illegal. We have helped retailers respond to cease and desist letters and negotiate settlements

• Our lawyers have worked with internet service providers having counterfeit goods removed from retail websites such as EBAY

• One of our attorneys is also a licensed private investigator and familiar with the criminal justice process

• Knowledge in this area is helpful when working with authorities to have counterfeit goods removed from websites and counterfeiters prosecuted. Our attorneys can help you navigate the legal process whether you are seeking damages or responding to a cease and desist letter

Fashion Models & Law

• Fashion models, agencies and photographers need an attorney who understands their legal issues and the fashion business

• Our attorneys have decades of experience advising industry professionals regarding mother agent agreements, agency contracts and model labor law regulations

We’re also prepared to advise on:

• Emerging Designers

• Luxury Goods

• Modeling Contracts

• Sustainable Fashion

• Labeling

• Mother agency agreements

• Model-agency agreements

• Take-Down Notices

• Child Modeling and Entertainment

• Photography Releases and Work-for-Hire Agreements

• Domestic Representation for Foreign Entities with US Patent & Trademark Office

• Brand Licensing, including negotiation, termination, and litigation

• Fashion Brand protection across public auction sites, business-to-business websites, business-to-consumer websites, and social media platforms

• Manufacturer and distribution agreements

• Advice regarding Gray-market, parallel, and counterfeit goods

• Counterfeit investigation