“Imagine my surprise when one of the responses I received was a letter from Katy Perry’s solicitors,” exclaimed the victorious Australian fashion designer.
Katy Perry has lost a trademark dispute with a Sydney-based fashion designer whose given name was spelled differently.
Katie Perry, now known as Katie Taylor, filed a lawsuit in 2019 alleging that the US pop star disregarded the trademark and sold clothing to fans in Australia via retailers and websites during her concert tours in 2014 and 2018.
The judge ruled that the Roar singer’s company, Kitty Purry, partially infringed on the trademark of Taylor’s business. Which primarily sells clothing online, by promoting products via social media postings.
Damages will be determined at a later date.
Federal court judge Brigitte Markovic said, “This is a tale of two women, two teenage dreams, and one name.”
The judge denied the singer’s request to revoke the Katie Perry trademark.
The verdict was made public Thursday after court documents were released.
Small enterprises triumph over “David and Goliath.”
Taylor praised the ruling as a “David and Goliath” victory for small businesses.
“Not only have I fought for myself, but I have also fought for small businesses in this country. Many of which were founded by women,” she wrote in a blog post. “These businesses can find themselves competing with foreign entities that have much more financial power than we do.”
In 2008, Taylor registered the Katie Perry trademark in Australia, igniting the legal conflict between the two women.
Taylor stated that the singer initially attempted to obstruct the registration and then filed a lawsuit to compel the designer to cease using the trademark, but later abandoned the effort.
She wrote on her blog, “When it all began in 2009, I had been designing and manufacturing clothing in Australia under the name I was born with, Katie Perry, which I applied to register as a trademark for my business – a natural progression. I was unaware of the performer at the time.
“You can imagine my astonishment when one of the responses I received was a letter from Katy Perry’s solicitors”.
They informed me that I must promptly cease trading under this name, withdraw all of my clothing. And also sign a document stating that I will never trade under this name again.
“A genuine David versus Goliath scenario! I felt intimidated, insulted, and shocked.”
Taylor instead “decided to fight against this injustice,” as she explained in her essay.
I resisted an assault against myself and the trademark.
“We established infringement, and the cross-claim was dismissed.”
The mother of two stated that she has been “bullied and trolled” throughout the case, along with her family and acquaintances.
Taylor continued, “This is a victory for local businesses.
My two young children have seen the importance of standing up for one’s views no matter how hard.
Representatives of Katy Perry have been contacted for comment.
The singer won a $2.8 million copyright appeal after being accused of plagiarising a rap song for her 2013 hit, Dark Horse.
A jury ruled in favor of rapper Flame, whose actual name is Marcus Grey, but a federal appeals court ruled in March 2017 that Perry and her team were not obligated to pay the approximately £2.1m sum.
Ed Sheeran was sued in the US this week for copying Marvin Gaye’s Let’s Get It On for Thinking Out Loud.
