Professional Documents
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 2 of 32 Page ID #:2
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 3 of 32 Page ID #:3
1 wrongs alleged herein, and that at all times referenced each was the agent and servant
2 of the other Defendants and was acting within the course and scope of said agency and
3 employment.
4 7. Deckers is informed and believes, and based thereon alleges, that at all
5 relevant times herein, Defendant and DOES 1 through 10, inclusive, knew or
6 reasonably should have known of the acts and behavior alleged herein and the damages
7 caused thereby, and by their inaction ratified and encouraged such acts and behavior.
8 Deckers further alleges that Defendant and DOES 1 through 10, inclusive, have a non-
9 delegable duty to prevent or not further such acts and the behavior described herein,
10 which duty Defendant and DOES 1 through 10, inclusive, failed and/or refused to
11 perform.
12 ALLEGATIONS COMMON TO ALL CAUSES OF ACTION
13 A. DeckersUGG Brand
14 8. Deckers has been engaged in the design, distribution, marketing, offering
15 for sale, and sale of footwear since 1975. Deckers owns several brands of footwear
16 including UGG, Koolaburra, Teva, Sanuk, and Hoka One One.
17 9. DeckersUGG brand remains one of the most recognized and relevant
18 comfort shoe brands in the industry. Since 1978, when the UGG brand was founded,
19 the popularity of UGG boots has steadily grown across the nation and even the
20 globe. The UGG brand has always been and remains highly coveted by consumers.
21 This commitment to quality has helped to propel the UGG brand to its current,
22 overwhelming level of popularity and cemented its status as a luxury brand.
23 10. It has now been seventeen years since UGG boots were first featured on
24 Oprahs Favorite Things in the year 2000, and Oprah emphatically declared on
25 national television how much she LOOOOOVES her UGG boots.The popularity of
26 UGG brand footwear has grown exponentially since then with celebrities including
27 Kate Hudson and Sarah Jessica Parker among a myriad of others regularly donning
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 4 of 32 Page ID #:4
1 them. UGG sheepskin boots have become a high fashion luxury item and can be
2 found on fashion runways around the world.
3 11. DeckersUGG products are distributed and sold to consumers through
4 authorized retailers throughout the United States at point-of-sale and on the Internet,
5 including through its UGG Concept Stores and its website www.ugg.com.
6 B. Defendants Infringing Activities
7 12. Upon information and belief, Defendant Sfy Global Inc. is engaged in the
8 design, manufacture, distribution, advertisement, promotion, offering for sale, and/or
9 sale of a wide range of footwear for women and kids, including boots, booties, casual
10 shoes, ballerina shoes, sandals, thongs, dress shoes, evening shoes, open toes, pumps
11 and wedges.
12 13. Upon information and belief, Defendants products are advertised, offered
13 for sale, and sold to various retailers, wholesalers, and distributors nationwide and
14 within this judicial district.
15 14. The present lawsuit arises from Defendants willful infringement of
16 DeckersUGG boot designs, to which Deckers owns design patent and/or trade dress
17 rights, including rights to the UGG Bailey Buttonboot and Essential Outsole, by
18 certain footwear products advertised, offered for sale, and/or sold by Defendant
19 (Infringing Products).
20 15. Deckers is informed and believes and herein alleges that Defendant is a
21 competitor and has copied Deckersboot designs in an effort to exploit Deckers
22 reputation in the market.
23 16. Upon information and belief, Defendant may have sold additional
24 products that infringe upon Deckersdesign patents and trade dresses. Deckers may
25 seek leave to amend as additional information becomes available through discovery.
26 17. Deckers has not granted a license or any other form of permission to
27 Defendant with respect to its trademarks, design patents, trade dresses, or other
28 intellectual property.
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 5 of 32 Page ID #:5
1 18. Deckers is informed and believes and herein alleges that Defendant has
2 acted in bad faith and that Defendants acts have misled and confused and were
3 intended to cause confusion, or to cause mistake, or to deceive as to the affiliation,
4 connection, or association of Defendants Infringing Products with Deckers, or as to
5 the origin, sponsorship, or approval of Defendants Infringing Products by Deckers.
6 FIRST CLAIM FOR RELIEF
7 (Trade Dress Infringement - 15 U.S.C. 1125(a))
8 19. Deckers incorporates herein by reference the averments of the preceding
9 paragraphs as though fully set forth herein.
10 20. The UGG Bailey Button boot was introduced in 2009 and the Bailey
11 Button Boot Trade Dressis unique and distinctive, consisting of a combination of the
12 following non-functional elements:
13 i Classic suede boot styling made famous by the UGG brand;
14 i Overlapping of front and rear panels on the lateral side of the boot shaft;
15 i Curved top edges on the overlapping panels;
16 i Exposed fleece-type lining edging the overlapping panels and top of the
17 boot shaft; and
18 i One or more buttons (depending on the height of the boot) prominently
19 featured on the lateral side of the boot shaft adjacent the overlapping panels
20 (hereinafter Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress).
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 6 of 32 Page ID #:6
1 21. The Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress, which is a composite of the above-
2 referenced features, is non-functional in its entirety, visually distinctive, and is unique
3 in the footwear industry.
4 22. The design of the Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress is neither essential to
5 its use or purpose nor does it affect the cost or quality of the boot. There are numerous
6 other designs available that are equally feasible and efficient, none of which
7 necessitate copying or imitating the Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress. The aforesaid
8 combination of features provides no cost advantages to the manufacturer or utilitarian
9 advantages to the consumer. These features, in combination, serve only to render
10 DeckersUGG Bailey Button boots distinct and recognizable as goods originating
11 from DeckersUGG brand.
12 23. The Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress is an original design by Deckers and
13 has achieved a high degree of consumer recognition and secondary meaning, which
14 serves to identify Deckers as the source of footwear featuring said trade dress.
15 24. The Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress is one of the most well-recognized
16 and commercially successful styles of DeckersUGG brand of footwear, having been
17 featured on Deckersadvertising and promotional materials as well as in various trade
18 publications. Furthermore, the Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress has been featured in
19 connection with various celebrities, has received a large volume of unsolicited media
20 attention, and has graced the pages of many popular magazines nationwide and
21 internationally.
22 25. Deckers has spent substantial time, effort, and money in designing,
23 developing, advertising, promoting, and marketing the UGG brand and its line of
24 footwear embodying the Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress. Deckers spends millions of
25 dollars annually on advertising of UGG products, which include products bearing the
26 Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress.
27 26. Deckers has sold hundreds of millions of dollars worth of UGG
28 products bearing the Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress.
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 7 of 32 Page ID #:7
1 27. Due to its long use, extensive sales, and significant advertising and
2 promotional activities, DeckersBailey Button Boot Trade Dress has achieved
3 widespread acceptance and recognition among the consuming public and trade
4 throughout the United States.
5 28. There are numerous other boot designs in the footwear industry, none of
6 which necessitate copying or imitating the Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress. However,
7 due to the popularity and consumer recognition achieved by the Bailey Button boot,
8 said design has often been the subject of infringement by third-parties, including
9 Defendant.
10 29. Deckers is informed and believes and herein alleges that Defendant is a
11 competitor and has copied DeckersBailey Button Boot Trade Dress in an effort to
12 exploit Deckersreputation in the market.
13 30. Amongst the Infringing Products produced, distributed, advertised and
14 offered for sale by Defendant are boots that bear nearly identical reproductions of the
15 Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress (see below), such as to cause a likelihood of confusion
16 as to the source, sponsorship or approval by Deckers of Defendants products.
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22 31. Defendants use of DeckersBailey Button Boot Trade Dress is without
23 Deckerspermission or authority and in total disregard of Deckersrights to control its
24 intellectual property.
25 32. Defendants use of DeckersBailey Button Boot Trade Dress is likely to
26 lead to and result in confusion, mistake or deception, and is likely to cause the public
27 to believe that Defendants products are produced, sponsored, authorized, or licensed
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 8 of 32 Page ID #:8
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 9 of 32 Page ID #:9
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 10 of 32 Page ID #:10
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 11 of 32 Page ID #:11
1 54. Deckers is the owner of numerous design patents to the various styles of
2 footwear and/or slippers it offers under its UGG brand. These design patents include
3 but are not limited to outsole designs, one of which is the Essential Outsole,U.S.
4 Patent No. D500,400 (issued on January 4, 2005), a true and correct copy of which is
5 attached hereto and incorporated herein as Exhibit B (400 Patent).
6 55. Deckers is the owner by assignment of all right, title and interest in and to
7 the 400 Patent.
8 56. Defendant has used, caused to be produced, distributed, advertised,
9 marketed, offered for sale, sold within the United States, and/or has imported into the
10 United States footwear that bear an outsole substantially similar to the 400 Patent (see
11 below) in direct violation of 35 U.S.C. 271.
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21 57. Defendants aforesaid infringing acts are without Deckerspermission or
22 authority and are in total disregard of Deckersright to control its intellectual property.
23 58. As a direct and proximate result of Defendants infringing conduct,
24 Deckers has been injured and will continue to suffer injury to its business and
25 reputation unless Defendant is restrained by this Court from infringing Deckers400
26 Patent.
27 59. Defendants acts have damaged and will continue to damage Deckers, and
28 Deckers has no adequate remedy at law.
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 12 of 32 Page ID #:12
1 60. Deckers marks all footwear products embodying the design of the 400
2 Patent with Pat. No. D500,400on a product label in compliance with 35 U.S.C.
3 287.
4 61. Given the widespread popularity and recognition of DeckersUGG
5 products and the patent notice provided on the products themselves, Deckers avers and
6 hereon alleges that Defendant had pre-suit knowledge of Deckersrights to the 400
7 Patent and has intentionally copied said design on its own brand of products in an
8 effort to pass them off as if they originated, are associated with, are affiliated with, are
9 sponsored by, are authorized by, and/or are approved by Deckers.
10 62. On information and belief, Defendants acts herein complained of
11 constitute willful acts and intentional infringement of the 400 Patent.
12 63. In light of the foregoing, Deckers is entitled to injunctive relief
13 prohibiting Defendant from infringing the 400 Patent and to recover damages
14 adequate to compensate for the infringement, including Defendants profits pursuant to
15 35 U.S.C. 289. Deckers is also entitled to recover any other damages as appropriate
16 pursuant to 35 U.S.C. 284.
17 FIFTH CLAIM FOR RELIEF
18 (Unfair Competition California Unfair Business Practices Act, Cal. Bus. & Prof.
19 Code, 17200, et. seq.)
20 64. Deckers incorporates herein by reference the averments of the preceding
21 paragraphs as though fully set forth herein.
22 65. Defendants appropriation, adoption and use of various UGG boot
23 designs, including the Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress, on its own footwear is likely to
24 confuse or mislead consumers into believing that Defendants goods are authorized,
25 licensed, affiliated, sponsored, and/or approved by Deckers, thus constituting a
26 violation of the California Unfair Business Practices Act, Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code,
27 17200, et. seq.
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 13 of 32 Page ID #:13
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 14 of 32 Page ID #:14
1 68. The deceptive, unfair and fraudulent practices set forth herein have been
2 undertaken with knowledge by Defendant willfully with the intention of causing harm
3 to Deckers and for the calculated purpose of misappropriating Deckersgoodwill and
4 business reputation.
5 69. Defendants acts have caused and will continue to cause irreparable injury
6 to Deckers. Deckers has no adequate remedy at law to compensate it fully for the
7 damages that have been caused and which will continue to be caused by Defendants
8 unlawful acts, unless it is enjoined by this Court.
9 70. In light of the foregoing, Deckers is entitled to all available relief
10 provided for in California Unfair Business Practices Act, Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code,
11 17200, et. seq. including permanent injunctive relief.
12 FOURTH CLAIM FOR RELIEF
13 (Unfair Competition Under California Common Law)
14 71. Deckers incorporates herein by reference the averments of the preceding
15 paragraphs as though fully set forth herein.
16 72. Defendants appropriation, adoption and use of various UGG boot
17 designs, including the Bailey Button Boot Trade Dress and patented outsole design, on
18 its own footwear constitutes unfair competition in violation of the common law of the
19 state of California.
20 73. Defendant is a competitor of Deckers and has copied Deckersboot
21 designs in an effort to exploit Deckersreputation in the market.
22 74. Defendants infringing acts were intended to capitalize on Deckers
23 goodwill associated therewith for Defendants own pecuniary gain. Deckers has
24 expended substantial time, resources and effort in creating and developing its unique
25 line of footwear that consumers recognize as originating from the UGG brand. As a
26 result of Deckersefforts, Defendant is now unjustly enriched and is benefiting from
27 property rights that rightfully belong to Deckers.
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 15 of 32 Page ID #:15
1 75. Defendants acts are willful, deliberate, and intended to confuse the public
2 and to injure Deckers.
3 76. Deckers has no adequate remedy at law to compensate it fully for the
4 damages that have been caused and which will continue to be caused by Defendants
5 infringing conduct, unless it is enjoined by this Court.
6 77. The conduct herein complained of was extreme, outrageous, and was
7 inflicted on Deckers in reckless disregard of Deckersrights. Said conduct was
8 despicable and harmful to Deckers and as such supports an award of exemplary and
9 punitive damages in an amount sufficient to punish and make an example of
10 Defendant, and to deter it from similar such conduct in the future.
11 PRAYER FOR RELIEF
12 WHEREFORE, Plaintiff Deckers Outdoor Corporation respectfully prays for
13 judgment against Defendant Sfy Global, Inc. as follows:
14 1. A Judgment that Defendant has infringed DeckersBailey Button Boot
15 Trade Dress and that said infringement was willful;
16 2. A Judgment that Defendant has infringed DeckersD599,999 and
17 D500,400 Patents and that said infringement was willful;
18 3. An order granting temporary, preliminary and permanent injunctive relief
19 restraining and enjoining Defendant, and its agents, servants, employees, officers,
20 associates, attorneys, and all persons acting by, through, or in concert with any of them
21 from using Deckersintellectual property, including, but not limited to:
22 a. manufacturing, importing, advertising, marketing, promoting,
23 supplying, distributing, offering for sale, or selling the Infringing Products or any other
24 products which bear DeckersBailey Button Boot Trade Dress and/or any designs
25 confusingly similar thereto;
26 b. manufacturing, importing, advertising, marketing, promoting,
27 supplying, distributing, offering for sale, or selling the Infringing Products or any other
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
Case 2:17-cv-07148 Document 1 Filed 09/27/17 Page 16 of 32 Page ID #:16
1 products which infringe the D599,999 and D500,400 Patents and/or the overall
2 appearance thereof;
3 c. engaging in any other activity constituting unfair competition with
4 Deckers, or acts and practices that deceive consumers, the public, and/or trade,
5 including without limitation, the use of designations and design elements used or
6 owned by or associated with Deckers; and
7 d. committing any other act which falsely represents or which has the
8 effect of falsely representing that the goods and services of Defendant is licensed by,
9 authorized by, offered by, produced by, sponsored by, or in any other way associated
10 with Deckers;
11 4. Ordering Defendant to recall from any distributors and retailers and to
12 deliver to Deckers for destruction or other disposition all remaining inventory of all
13 Infringing Products and related items, including all advertisements, promotional and
14 marketing materials therefore, as well as means of making same;
15 5. Ordering Defendant to file with this Court and serve on Deckers within
16 thirty (30) days after entry of the injunction a report in writing, under oath setting forth
17 in detail the manner and form in which Defendant has complied with the injunction;
18 6. Ordering an accounting by Defendant of all gains, profits and advantages
19 derived from its wrongful acts pursuant to 15 U.S.C. 1117(a) and 35 U.S.C. 289;
20 7. Awarding Deckers all of Defendants profits and all damages sustained by
21 Deckers as a result of Defendants wrongful acts, and such other compensatory
22 damages as the Court determines to be fair and appropriate;
23 8. Awarding treble damages in the amount of Defendants profits or
24 Deckersdamages, whichever is greater, for willful infringement;
25 9. Awarding applicable interest, costs, disbursements and attorneysfees;
26 10. Awarding Deckers punitive damages in connection with its claims under
27 California law; and
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
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COMPLAINT FOR DAMAGES AND EQUITABLE RELIEF
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EXHIBIT A
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EXHIBIT B
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