Columbia Sportswear v. Seirus Innovative Accessories (Fed. Cir. Nov. 13, 2019)
- quantumpat
- May 24, 2021
- 1 min read
A would-be infringer should not escape liability for design patent infringement if a design is copied but labeled with its name. But L.A. Gear, Inc. v. Thom McAn Shoe Co. does not prohibit the fact finder from considering an ornamental logo, its placement, and its appearance as one among other potential differences between a patented design and an accused one.
In other words, if an ordinary observer determines that the accused design and the patent design are not "substantially the same" due to the presence of logo(s), there is no infringement.
Read the case here.