Fashion cat fight: Aeropostale vs. H&M

Call it a David and Goliath story. The teen retailer Aeropostale has filed a lawsuit against H&M over the use of its trademarked “Live Love Dream” phrase on some of its clothing and accessories. According to Aeropostale’s complaint, it contacted the Swedish retailer in March after discovering that it had used the phrase without authorization. H&M failed to pull the merchandise, spurring on Aeropostale to take the issue to court.

“Despite receiving this notice, and subsequent notice that is also infringing other marks owned by Aeropostale Procurement, H&M continues to display and/or sell products bearing numerous trademarks owned and used by Aeropostale,” the complaint reads. 

So why would Aeropostale take on H&M? Susan Scafidi, a fashion law professor at Fordham Law, notes that clothing companies send letters threatening lawsuits constantly and that the vast majority of altercations like this are settled outside of court, with the company at fault possibly pulling the offending merchandise and paying a settlement. 

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