Supreme Court to hear fashion copyright case involving Varsity Brands
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Copyright law has long been a grey area in the fashion industry. Most copyright laws don't protect things that are utilitarian, and there has never been a case that has set a true precedent for how fashion copyright law will be heard in the United States. However, this could all change.
On Monday, May 2, 2016, the Supreme Court agreed to hear a case between Star Athletica LLC and Varsity Brands Inc. Star Athletic petitioned the high court in January asking the justices to weigh in on a test for when a feature of a "useful article is protectable" under the Copyright Act.
This case comes from a lawsuit filed by Varsity Brands against Star Athletica in 2010, which charged Star Athletica with infringing on copyright of their cheerleader uniforms.
Given how fashion copyright cases have been known to go either way in favor of the copier or alleged copies, there's no real telling how this case could go. However, the Supreme Court might finally set a precedent for a decades old fashion issue.