Adidas and fashion brand Thom Browne have recommenced their legal dispute over their trademark striped patterns.
Thom Browne previously sued the sportswear giant in London in 2021 in a bid to revoke various Adidas trademarks that feature its three-striped logo.
The New York brand insisted the sportswear titan was effectively trying to establish a monopoly over the use of stripes on clothing, Reuters reported.
The sportswear brand is now suing Thom Browne for allegedly breaking the terms of its trademarks through the sale of sportswear and leisure products with four stripes, accusing the company of exploiting its brand image and reputation.
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Commenting on the trial at London’s High Court, which is expected to end next week, Thom Browne’s lawyer Philip Roberts claimed the sportswear brand had utilised certain trademarks as “Trojan horses” to ward off the use of stripes on other brands’ goods.
However, Adidas lawyer Charlotte May described Thom Browne’s 2020 introduction of a sportswear range as a tipping point that “strikes at the heart of the Adidas business”.
The company lost a three-stripe trademark case against the fashion retailer last year, with jurors ruling that the use of parallel lines on its designs did not infringe on the three-stripe trademark or cause confusion among shoppers.
In May, Nike also partially won a three-stripe trademark battle against Adidas, during a second appeal hearing between the competitors.
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