Luxury jewellery designer Van Cleef and Arpels is suing top German model Heidi Klum for reportedly ripping off a customized clover design for one of her jewellery lines.
Washington, Dec 29 : Luxury jewellery designer Van Cleef and Arpels is suing top German model Heidi Klum for reportedly ripping off a customized clover design for one of her jewellery lines.
The jewellery firm filed the suit against the 34-year-old model in Manhattan's federal court last week citing copyright infringement.
They are suing the 'Project Runway' host for damages in excess of 25,000 dollars.
The suit claims that the designs created by Heidi Klum GmbH and Mouawad USA are so similar to Van Cleef and Arpels's vintage Alhambra line, that they have caused 'confusion in the marketplace.'
"Defendants have appropriated this design and incorporated it into their jewelry line, attempting to appropriate the goodwill built up by Van Cleef and Arpels to create their own 'symbol.' Such use...has created great confusion in the marketplace," E! Online quoted the firm, as stating in the suit.
However, designer Pascal Mouawad, head of Mouawad USA, has dismissed the claim.
"We believe this claim has no merit. It's clear that shapes like clovers, hearts, crosses, etc, are universal symbols and are commonly used in jewellery," he said.
"Heidi has been wearing her pieces on Project Runway and we've seen them become quite popular.
"The clover has always been in fashion and you can see that many other luxury jewellery houses have their own interpretations of this wonderful shape such as Louis Vuitton and Chopard," he added.
ANI