Louboutin Red Soles Entitled to Trademark Protection: Second Circuit | Practical Law
In Christian Louboutin S.A. v. Yves Saint Laurent America Holdings, Inc., the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed in part the district court's ruling that Louboutin's red lacquered shoe soles are not entitled to trademark protection. However, the Second Circuit limited protection to red soles that contrast in color with the rest of the shoe, finding that only contrasting uses had achieved secondary meaning sufficient for trademark protection under the Lanham Act. The court affirmed the district court's denial of a preliminary injunction on the basis that YSL's shoe did not use Louboutin's mark, because that shoe was monochrome red with a red sole, outside the scope of what the court found protectable.