Madonna Sued Over Material Girl Clothing Line Name

by Katie Hintz-Zambrano (Subscribe to Katie Hintz-Zambrano's posts)
Posted Aug 20th 2010 at 5:30PM

Madonna Macy's Material Girl clothing line sunglasses mannequin in store black leather gingham bustier blazer

Who is the real "Material Girl"? Madonna at Macy's with one of her new clothing line's looks.

Madonna's foray into fashion with her Material Girl juniors line, sold exclusively at Macy's, has hit a sudden snag.

According to RadarOnline.com, the California-based clothing manufacturer L.A. Triumph slapped Madonna with a lawsuit on Aug. 19, claiming it's been using the registered Material Girl name on its own juniors clothing range since 1997, selling the goods in big retailers such as Nordstrom and Ross.

In court documents posted on Radar, L.A. Triumph says,"Between 1997 and present day, L.A. Triumph and its predecessor have sold millions of dollars of the Material Girl brand of clothes in commerce throughout the United States and have spent large sums in its promotion and advertisement."

The papers go on to explain that Madonna "improperly filed a United States Trademark Application for the Material Girl mark" in December 2009 and that the pop star's brand is now directly competing with -- and threatens to eclipse -- L.A. Triumph's label of the same name.

Though didn't Madonna coin the term "Material Girl" -- it is her nickname after all -- when she released the 1985 hit song? Just sayin'.

"Madonna and MGB's clothing line for young women has garnered significant press attention for its risqué advertising campaign," says the statement, referring to the Lourdes-styled ads featuring former "Gossip Girl" star Taylor Momsen.

"Plaintiff's Material Girl clothing line retails at the same general price point and in the same general retail space as the Defendant's infringing clothes."

The lawsuit also hints at next going after retailer Macy's for promoting Madonna's clothing line.

So far Madonna and her team have offered no response.

In related fashion-meets-legal news, read about the new CFDA-supported act that aims to protect a designer's intellectual property.

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Filed under: Fashion, Celebrity, News, Designers & Brands, Celebrity Style
Tags: celebrity fashion lines, fashion lawsuits, juniors, la triumph, lawsuits, macys, madonna, material girl, Material Girl Clothing Line, suing

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READER COMMENTS

(4)Add A Comment

alex, 8-21-2010, 7:43AM

Loving this I shot a similar series whilst at the Distil Ennui stock library

Reply »

Seth, 8-23-2010, 7:40PM

Madonna IS the Material Girl. Um, hello, duh.

Reply »

Lissy, 9-11-2010, 9:23PM

Here! Here! DUHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!! Right On, Seth!!!!

Seriously, People! PuhL-eezz!!! These low-lifes have been selling stuff with the name "Material Girl" slapped RIGHT ON IT! It is painfully-painfully OBVIOUS that their intentions had always been (from the very beginning) to allow the consumer to think that their junk came from Madonna... And I BET that the style of clothing these leaches have been peddling wasn't exactly scottish-tartan blazers or maryjanes... NO, OF COURSE NOT! Instead, I bet their clothes emulates the style of the "Material Girl" video and subsequent image changes that Madonna has undergone.

These smoochers ought to be the ones sued by the "MATERIAL GIRL" herself, since they've been taking advantage of her image and her name since 1997 or who knows for how long:

Wherever you see any item --be it a garment or a coffee mug-- with the words "Material Girl" on them, you'll AUTOMATICALLY think it has something to do with Madonna. And that's EXACTLY WHY L.A. triumph customers have been buying their product. No question about it!!!!!! Talk about false-advertisement.

To be objective and fair: I'm a fan of Madonna's but I would sue her instead for dangling that skanky image before impressionable teenage girls and for selecting the skankiest-most-foul-mouthed-dirty-low-class (and ugly too) of present-day celebri-teens to market her design ventures.
:( I'm sooo disgusted ugh!

Mike Smith, 8-25-2010, 1:33PM

Sorry Seth but Marilyn Monroe was and still is the original "Material
Girl." Madonna just capitalized the concept................ you must be under 35?

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