Abstract
This writing begs to answer the ninety-year-old question of whether or not fashion designs should be protected by law. In answering this question, Section II explores design protection in the United States and the actions taken for almost a full century in determining the legal protection of fashion. Section III discusses the many facets of fashion design, as information technology and art. Section IV reviews the evolution of copying, its benefits and detriments, and the theories proposing protection against copies. Section V addresses current U.S. intellectual property laws affecting fashion as well as the protections of individual European countries and the European Directive as a whole. Section VI examines the current legislative proposal-the Design Piracy Prohibition Act. It discusses both the Act's benefits and the detriments, with additional commentary on possible ways to facilitate passage of the Act.
Recommended Citation
Harchuck, Kimberly A.
(2010)
"Fashion Design Protection: The Eternal Plight of the "Soft Sculpture","
Akron Intellectual Property Journal: Vol. 4
:
Iss.
1
, Article 3.
Available at:
https://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/akronintellectualproperty/vol4/iss1/3