Project Runway: Heidi Klum Faces Lawsuit
Posted on Dec 31, 2007 under Entertainments Gossip |
Since last year, Project Runway host and judge Heidi Klum has been designing jewelry for Mouward USA. For some individuals, when first seeing her clover-shaped designs for the company, there was confusion.
The designs seemed reminiscent of the iconic style used by Van Cleef & Arpels stylized clover shape. Some less familiar with jewelry ins and outs thought she was designing for the company famous for that shape (and wondered what she was designing, exactly, since the shape was already set).
Other, savvier fashionista weren’t so much confused as curious: was the Project Runway judge, despite her fashion industry status, somehow unaware of the similarities?
Now, that question is the heart of a lawsuit launched by Van Cleef & Arpels against Klum and Mouward.
The complaint alleges that the “[d]efendants have appropriated this design and incorporated it into their jewelry line, attempting to appropriate the goodwill built up by Van Cleef & Arpels to create their own ’symbol,’…Such use…has created great confusion in the marketplace.” One of the examples the suit gives to support its claims is a New York Times article on the clover design and that remarks that Heidi “appropriated” the shape.
Oddly, Van Cleef & Arpels is only looking for around $25,000 in damages, while their own necklaces can cost more than twice that.
The owner of Mouwad, “diamond tycoon” Pascal Mouwad, talked to People magazine prior to the lawsuit about the similarities and dismissed the claims of appropriation.
“It’s clear that shapes like clovers, hearts, crosses, etc, are universal symbols and are commonly used in jewelry,” he said. “Heidi has been wearing her pieces on Project Runway and we’ve seen them become quite popular.
“The clover has always been in fashion, and you can see that many other luxury jewelry houses have their own interpretations of this wonderful shape such as Louis Vuitton and Chopard.”
It remains to be seen if the law will agree with Mouwad’s or Van Cleef & Arpels’ perspective on the issue of Heidi’s designs.
