Edie Parker sues Box Bag

Edie Parker, the New York-based label known for their stylish vintage-inspired clutches, apparently has a copycat. The company has filed a lawsuit against Box Bag and their agent Beth Smolen. According to the lawsuit filed in the Southern District of New York by Edie Parker, LLC, in lieu of creating and marketing her own designs, Smolen "sells handbags that parasitically copy Edie Parker’s protected handbag trade dress and copyrighted designs.”

The lawsuit alleges federal trademark infringement, unfair competition, trade dress infringement, and copyright infringement. The trade dress for the Edie Parker's Box Clutch is described as follows: The overall shape of the bag is a rectangular box, which includes top and bottom portions, left and right side portions, and back and front portions. The top, bottom, left and right side portions are comprised of two parts. The top, bottom, front, and back portions are longer horizontally than vertically, and the side portions are longer vertically than in depth; the edges of the bag are rounded; the bag is made of a rigid plastic looking material; the bag opens at the top, with the rectangular box separating into front and back parts, the separation occurring along a plane parallel to the front and back portions of the bag when in closed spatial relationship with each other; the front and back parts are maintained in closed spatial relationship with each other by a closure device positioned at the top portion of the bag; etc.

Beth Smolen sued by Edie Parker

Edie Parker has three federally registered copyrights, so this could get quite messy for Box Bag depending on how this plays out in court. The likely argument here would be one of confusion between the two brands, and Parker could also argue lost profits, but that is traditionally difficult to argue in court. The lawsuit also alleges that Smolen "has also misused the Edie Parker trademark on her website and social media, all in a wrongful attempt to exploit the hard work and creative effort of Edie Parker and create consumer confusion and attract attention to [Smolen’s] website and marketing efforts.”

Smolen is very bold, because even in the face of the lawsuit she is still continuing to market and sell her products that are considered copies of Edie Parker's designs. Edie Parker, LLC, is hoping that the court will order Smolen to immediately stop marketing and using the designs, in addition to paying damages in excess of 50,000 dollars.