Pop Star Katy Perry Wins Legal Battle Over Sydney Designer’s ‘Katie Perry’ Brand

American pop star Katy Perry has won the longstanding legal battle with Australian fashion designer Katie Jane Taylor (née Perry), who sells clothing under the brand name ‘Katie Perry’.

In a decision made in Sydney on Friday 22 November, the Full Court of the Federal Court said the Aussie designer’s claim could not succeed because her trademark “was not validly registered,” and the register “should be rectified by cancelling its registration”.

Sydney-based designer Taylor sued Katy Perry — who was born Katherine Elizabeth Hudson — in 2019 for trademark infringement over her own “Katy Perry” merchandise, and nearly succeeded. 

But Perry and her related companies filed an appeal against Taylor. 

The court said the “difference in spelling of ‘Katy’ v ‘Katie’ does not take the aurally identical word marks beyond deceptive similarity”.

Katie Perry designer Katie Jane Taylor says she has ‘lost everything’

Taylor told The New York Post, “I have lost everything, including my trademark. As you can imagine I’m devastated.”

Her legal team argued that the designer first became aware of singer Katy Perry in July of 2008, by which point she had already invested heavily in her brand.

Taylor’s ‘Katie Perry’ loungewear brand has been trademarked since September of 2008, and its domain name had been registered in Australia in May 2007.

However, the trademark registration was deemed invalid as it was likely to “deceive or cause confusion” at a time when Perry was already a “nationally and internationally famous pop star” who had “released several singles and an album which had achieved significant exposure in Australian media.”

The Full Court issued a limited stay, delaying the enforcement of the trademark cancellation order until the High Court appeal process is resolved. Taylor, who is also facing a substantial costs order, does not have an automatic right to appeal and would have to seek special leave to proceed.

Taylor told Sydney Morning Herald: “I am devastated with the outcome of the case. I won my case at first instance and to have it overturned on appeal is heartbreaking.

“This case proves a trademark isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on. My fashion label has been a dream of mine since I was 11 years old, and now that dream that I have worked so hard for since 2006 has been taken away,” Taylor said.