The other very expensive and very elegant shoe has dropped in the case of Louboutin v. Yves Saint Laurent. A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled in September that French designer Christian Louboutin’s distinctive red-soled shoes are entitled to at least limited trademark protection, reversing a lower court holding that a single color can’t be trademarked in the fashion industry. The decision also shed some light on the often-confounding doctrine of “aesthetic functionality.”
The court’s ruling made Louboutin’s attorneys very happy, with Harley Lewin of McCarter & English saying, “We got essentially what we wanted we got affirmation that Louboutin’s mark is valid and enforceable, and we now have a clear statement of the methodology that needs to be followed in cases of this kind.”
