Issue No. 002
May 11, 2026
New York
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The IP Briefing · by ESCA Legal
|
|
|
|
| Dua Lipa filed a federal lawsuit in California against Samsung, alleging the electronics company used a copyrighted photograph of her face on TV packaging sold in the United States without permission or compensation. The complaint says the image made Samsung televisions appear connected to her endorsement and seeks at least $15 million in damages. |
| § | The complaint was filed Friday in the Central District of California. | | § | Lipa alleges Samsung used a photograph from her 2024 Austin City Limits appearance on packaging for a significant portion of its televisions sold in the United States. | | § | The lawsuit brings copyright, Lanham Act, trademark, and California right-of-publicity claims. | | § | The complaint says Lipa demanded removal after learning of the packaging in June 2025 and that Samsung refused to stop using it. |
|
| Continue reading → |
| § ESCA Takeaway |
| Celebrity identity and expressive branding are doing real legal work: a TV box, an album title, a shadow library, and an AI dataset each show how valuable creative assets become once they move through mass-market channels. |
|
|
| More IP Stories |
|
| § Trademark · Filed |
|
|
| Taylor Swift, TAS Rights Management, UMG Recordings, and Bravado International asked a California federal judge to deny Maren Flagg’s request for a preliminary injunction over The Life of a Showgirl. Flagg, who performs as Maren Wade, claims the album title infringes her registered Confessions of a Showgirl trademark. |
| § | The opposition was filed May 6 in California federal court. | | § | Flagg sued in March and seeks to block Swift and related companies from using The Life of a Showgirl while the case proceeds. | | § | Swift’s team argues Flagg cannot show likely success, irreparable harm, or a basis for emergency relief. | | § | The filing argues the album title is an expressive-work title protected by the First Amendment and not likely to confuse consumers. |
|
|
Why it matters
Album titles sit in a special trademark zone because they are both brands and expressive works. The dispute gives entertainment companies a clean example of how injunction standards, consumer confusion, and First Amendment defenses collide when a performer tries to stop a major release.
|
| Continue reading → |
|
QUICK HITS
| § Copyright | Major publishers asked a federal court for a $19.5 million default judgment and a broad domain takedown order against Anna’s Archive, a new enforcement step in the book piracy case. [source] | | § Copyright | A California federal judge allowed authors’ contributory copyright claims against NVIDIA to proceed over alleged scripts tied to The Pile dataset, while dismissing vicarious liability claims with leave to amend. [source] |
|
|
|
|
Not subscribed? Sign up for future editions of Marked by ESCA Legal.
|
|
|
|
This newsletter is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Published by ESCA Legal. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Attorney advertising; prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
|