
The business that created former President Donald Trump’s latest shoe line filed a complaint on Monday, accusing several individuals and companies of selling and promoting fake footwear.
The lawsuit alleges copyright and trademark infringement and was filed in federal court in Arizona. The plaintiffs claimed the defendants will be identified in a future sealed document, so they are not named. According to the lawsuit, they are primarily non-U.S.-based people, unincorporated business associations, and business entities that use domestically hosted commercial websites for their operations.
The company, 45Footwear LLC, requested that the court forbid the defendants from engaging in any illegal reproduction. Additionally, the bans included prohibiting the defendants from advertising or selling fake sneakers, as well as from running or registering websites related to their sales. Additionally, they requested that the court grant them $2 million for “each and every use” of the mark that each defendant had counterfeited and $25,000 for each copyright infringement, or that the defendants account for and pay them “any and all profits” related to trademark law violations.
In February, Trump introduced the Trump Sneakers collection. It has three distinct pairs, each costing between $199 and $399 and featuring the letter “T” among other details: high-tops, red laceless athletic shoes, and white laceless athletic shoes.
Additionally, the shoes have been marketed as a perk for wealthy benefactors. The sneakers were sold with a license utilizing Trump’s name, image, and likeness. They have no connection to his political effort.
In their case, 45Footwear’s attorneys claimed that they had employed an internet fraud investigator to find individuals and companies advertising and retailing fake sneakers “prior to the actual Sneakers ever being shipped.”