Los Angeles, CA – On January 15, 2009, a federal jury returned a unanimous verdict in the amount of $447,670.00 against retail chain Lane Bryant, Inc., and its suppliers. The nearly half a million dollar verdict sends a powerful message to apparel companies who choose to sell fabric and garments bearing knock-off textile designs.

Responding to arguments made by Scott A. Burroughs and Stephen M. Doniger of DONIGER / BURROUGHS APC,the jury found that the Plaintiff, a local textile company, owned a copyright for an original print design, and that the defendants sold fabric and garments bearing a modified knock-off of that print.

Notably, the jury also found certain of the defendants’ infringements to be willful, because, among other reasons, they did not stop selling the infringing garments after receiving a cease and desist notice advising them of the infringement.