Claudia Byatt
Legal

Aussie designer wins lawsuit against Katy Perry

One of Katy Perry’s companies has been found guilty of infringing the trademark of a Sydney fashion designer.

Katie Jane Taylor has designed and sold her own line of clothing under her label ‘Katie Perry’ since 2008.

While the pop superstar Perry, born Katheryn Hudson, initially fought the Australian registration of the Katie Perry brand, she later withdrew it. 

Taylor sued the singer for infringement in the Federal Court in 2019, more than a decade after the Firework singer started selling her own brand of merchandise, including clothing, under her stage name. 

“This is a tale of two women, two teenage dreams and one name,” Justice Brigitte Markovic wrote in a judgement published on April 29 2023.

Judge Markovic found Hudson had infringed the mark on Twitter ahead of one of her Australian tours in 2014.

Despite the infringement, the judge concluded that the singer did not owe any compensation to the designer as she had used the trademark in “good faith”.

One of the singer’s other businesses Kitty Purry however is liable for damages because of the sale of clothing during her 2014 tour. 

A bid by the star and her companies to cancel the Katy Perry trademark was dismissed by the Federal Court.

Markovic is yet to determine the amount of damages owed by Kitty Purry. 

Image credit: Getty

Tags:
Katy Perry, Katie Perry clothing, Lawsuit, Court