Société Yves Saint Laurent Couture v. Société Louis Dreyfus Retail Management S.A.
Paris Commercial Court
[1994] E.C.C. 512 (1994)
- Written by Jody Stuart, JD
Facts
Société Yves Saint Laurent Couture (Yves) (plaintiff) sued Polo Ralph Lauren (Polo) (defendant) in French court for infringement of Yves’s dinner-jacket dress. The Yves dress was long and double-breasted, with a large collar. The shoulders, arms, and back of the Yves dress were open to the waist. Yves argued that the idea of converting a dinner jacket into an evening dress was a creation protected by law. Yves also argued that the Polo dress was essentially identical to the Yves dress, including its long length, no sleeves, bare shoulders and back, double-breasted front, and lapel collar. Polo argued that an idea could be used by anyone and could not be infringed. Polo also argued that the only similarity to the Yves dress was the idea of the dinner-jacket dress. Polo identified differences between the two dresses, including the neck, the buttons, the front panel on the cross, and ready-to-wear workmanship instead of haute couture. The court noted that the back cut of the Yves dress had three seams, and the back cut of the Polo dress had only one.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (de Charnace, Carrale, J.J.)
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