Fashion 2.0: It’s Time for the Fashion Industry to Get Better-suited, Custom-tailored Legal Protection
11 Drexel L. Rev. 337 (2018)
45 Pages Posted: 6 Nov 2020
Date Written: 2018
Abstract
In the United States, fashion designs are not protectible under any of the traditional forms of intellectual property—namely patents, copyrights, or trademarks. Fashion designs are creative works of art and as such are worthy of the same protection as musical recordings, films, books, software programs, or paintings. However, because Congress has consistently neglected addressing the piracy problem in the fashion industry, fast-fashion brands and retailers have been rampantly copying fashion designs almost without consequence. This unethical behavior hurts emerging designers and smaller brands the most. This is why the legal system should stop turning a blind eye and provide designers with a solution that allows for the protection of their designs without interfering with the unique pace of the fashion industry’s creative process.
Keywords: fashion, fashion law, fashion design, fashion designer, intellectual property, copyrights, trademarks, patents
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