Lewis & Lin Obtains Dismissal of Copyright Action Against New York Fashion Designer

Lewis & Lin obtained a dismissal of a federal lawsuit against our client alleging copyright violations.

The case was filed in federal court in California by the registered copyright owner of two original textile print artworks. Plaintiff claimed that Lewis & Lin’s client Dani II Inc.--owner of the KAS New York fashion label--distributed clothing that infringed on plaintiff’s designs to Neiman Marcus stores for sale nationwide.

At the inception of the case, Lewis & Lin filed a motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction, arguing that Dani II did not possess minimum contacts with California, and therefore maintaining the suit there would violate its due process rights.

Judge Beverly Reid O’Connell of the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles agreed. In a written opinion, the court ruled that plaintiff “failed to carry its burden to contravene” Dani II’s sworn statement supporting its position that general jurisdiction should not lie in California.

Regarding plaintiff’s argument for specific jurisdiction, the court agreed with Lewis & Lin on all three parts of the 9th Circuit’s Schwarzenegger test. The test requires that plaintiff show (1) the non-resident defendant purposefully directed its activities with the forum state, (2) the plaintiff’s claim arises out of the defendant’s forum-related activities, and (3) the exercise of jurisdiction comports with fair play and substantial justice. As the court ruled: “even assuming that Dani II knew that goods shipped to Neiman Marcus might have eventually ended up in California, it is not enough that the defendant might have predicted that its goods will reach the forum State.” The court further stated that plaintiff “only provided speculative and conclusory statements to establish Dani II’s contacts with California [and] plaintiff’s naked assertion cannot suffice absent further factual enhancement.”

Accordingly, the court granted Lewis & Lin’s motion to dismiss. The case is Star Fabrics, Inc. v. Neiman Marcus Group LLC et al., No. 14-CV-7170 (C.D. Cal.).