Katheryn Hudson, known professionally as Katy Perry is not backing down after an Australian judge ruled that the singer infringed an Australian designer’s trade mark for her own name, which we previously reported on back in April this year. The singer has now filed an appeal against the ruling.
In summary, an Australian fashion designer Katie Taylor (née, you guessed it, Perry!) sold her designs and built a brand under her birth name, and successfully registered it as a trade mark in Australia back in 2008. Little did she know that would spark a lengthy 14 year legal battle with the Californian singer as In the same year, Katy Perry found fame in the music industry.
A few years later, the singer sold clothing merchandise bearing her stage name during an Australian tour which ignited the length feud. The battle was brought to a end earlier this year when a judge ruled in favour of the designer and ordered the singer’s company to pay damages. However, the judge ruled that the singer did not act in bad faith and so did not order personal compensation to the designer.
In response, the singer sought cancellation of the disputed mark, on the grounds that her brand had acquired a reputation before the designer’s, but this was also denied by the judge as her reputation related to music and not clothing. It sounds like the singer thinks of the defeat as “the one that got away” and wants to “roar” in the court room once again, as the appeal proceedings are due to commence at near the end of the year.
If you have any questions on the above, please do not hesitate to contact the team at McDaniels Law on 0191 281 4000 or legal@mcdanielslaw.com.