London High Court To Decide On Trademark Rights Battle Between Adidas And Thom Browne

London High Court To Decide On Trademark Rights Battle Between Adidas And Thom Browne

The trial is expected to conclude soon

The London High Court is hearing the latest round of a global dispute between athletic wear giant Adidas and fashion house Thom Browne. The two entities have resumed their legal battle focused on their competing striped trademarks.

In 2021, New York designer Browne, who regularly uses a four-bar stripe pattern, sued Adidas to revoke several trademarks featuring Adidas' iconic three-stripe motif.

Browne, which changed from a three-bar pattern in 2007 after Adidas complained, argued that Adidas was trying to establish a monopoly on the use of stripes on garments.

However, Adidas countersued Browne for allegedly infringing its trademarks by selling leisure and sportswear featuring four stripes, accusing Browne of exploiting its reputation and brand image.

Last year, the companies had a face-off in the US, where a jury rejected Adidas' trademark lawsuit. Later, the decision was upheld on appeal.

Meanwhile, Browne intends to bring a separate trademark litigation against Adidas in the Netherlands and at the European Union Intellectual Property Office.

Thom Browne's lawyer Philip Roberts said that Adidas used certain trademarks as ‘Trojan horses’ to prevent the use of stripes on other companies' products.

He added, “The breadth of Adidas' asserted monopoly, which threatens the basic freedom of fashion designers to design clothing in the manner they wish.”

At this, Charlotte May, the Adidas' lawyer expressed that Browne's 2020 launch of a sportswear range was a tipping point that "strikes at the heart of the Adidas business.”

She pointed to a collaboration with NBA star LeBron James and a partnership with Spanish soccer team FC Barcelona, when Adidas-sponsored player Lionel Messi was at the club, as evidence that "Browne intended to continue their encroachment into sportswear and sports marketing.”