Hermès Wins Trademark Case Against MetaBirkins NFTs

SNEAK PEEK

  • Hermes and Mason were accused of violating copyright laws.
  • David Leichtman of Leichtman Law said Mason misled their users.
  • Trial in the Hermès v. Metabirkins case began on January 30.

Mason Rothschild, a NFT artist, and Hèrmes were accused of violating copyright in the case, which the nine-person jury found in Hèrmes’ favor on Wednesday. The jury found that Rothschild profited from Hermès’ goodwill by designing NFTs based on the fashion house’s Birkin bags and awarded Hermès $133,000 in damages. The jury also determined that the First Amendment to the United States Constitution did not protect NFTs.

The case sets an indisputable precedent for NFT creators and builds the framework for intellectual property (IP) law relating to digital creations. In a recent interview, Leichtman Law’s David Leichtman said the case wasn’t about Mason Rothschild’s use of the Birkin brand. Instead, it was about whether he intended to mislead consumers.

After Rothschild, a resident of Los Angeles, unveiled an NFT line based on the company’s renowned Birkin handbag in 2022, Hermès launched a lawsuit against him. According to Rothschild, his work was artistic and made a significant statement about the fashion industry. He also claimed that the First Amendment protected his creative speech. The trial in the Hermès v. Metabirkins case began on January 30.

According to Rothschild, the verdict sets a precedent regarding future IP and creativity for artists.Hermès and Rothschild retained witnesses with knowledge of trademark law and NFTs to testify, and the Rogers v. Grimaldi criterion was applied to weigh creative expression against trademark infringement. Rothschild’s MetaBirkin NFTs, according to Hermès’ attorney, Oren Warshavsky, deceived consumers and damaged the Hermès brand.