Yves Saint Laurent Fights Christian Louboutin Lawsuit
Yves Saint Laurent isn't going down without a fight.
The fashion house is speaking out about the lawsuit filed against it by Christian Louboutin, which charges that YSL is infringing upon his trademark by selling shoes with red soles, the New York Post reports.
Though Louboutin—who is also suing Brazilian label Carmen Steffens—claims that red soles are his exclusive signature, court papers filed by YSL say the crimson look hit fashion "long before" Louboutin arrived on the scene.
"Red outsoles are a commonly used ornamental design feature in footwear, dating as far back as the red shoes worn by King Louis XIV in the 1600s and the ruby red shoes that carried Dorothy home in The Wizard of Oz," YSL says.
"As an industry leader who has devoted his entire professional life to women's footwear, Mr. Louboutin either knew or should have known about some or all of the dozens of footwear models that rendered his sworn statement false."
The label also maintains that Louboutin—who is asking for $1 million in damages—is using the suit as an "anti-competitive campaign" to convince high-end retailers to no longer carry Yves Saint Laurent shoes.
Oh dear. We hate it when Mommy and Daddy argue.
In other footwear news, Jimmy Choo has been sold to Labelux.
