Pictured: Con Law Hater
You know what can really help a brand? A celebrity endorsement. You know what can really hurt one? Bypassing the process and using a celebrity’s picture without getting written permission first. Because if you thought a photography company wouldn’t sue over an unauthorized picture of Kim Kardashian in a body-tight skin suit, you clearly haven’t been keeping up with them. From Bloomberg Law:
A California clothing store allegedly infringed the copyright of a photography company’s image of Kim Kardashian in a pink latex bodysuit, according to a federal lawsuit.
The photo was allegedly used in an October 2021 story on the website for Vex Clothing Inc. without Chosen Figure LLC’s permission, according to the complaint filed Monday in the US District Court for the Central District of California.
…
Chosen Figure seeks damages, an injunction, costs and attorneys’ fees, and disgorgement of all of Vex Clothing’s profits attributable to the alleged infringement.
Going for the injunction seems a bit moot — the picture has already been removed from the site and nobody in their right mind would blunder like this again. Guess it can’t hurt to be safe. Really hoping Vex either has detailed financials or an amazing legal team; I imagine that infringing a Kim K pic for two years would rack up quite the bill. In the future, just reach out to the celebrities directly. I’m sure a skin-tight clothing campaign would have went over just as well if they called in Jack Black or Danny DeVito.
Clothing Store Hit With Copyright Suit Over Kim Kardashian Photo [Bloomberg Law]
Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s. He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who cannot swim, a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at [email protected] and by tweet at @WritesForRent.
