Innovative Design Protection and Piracy Prevention Act (legislation to protect fashion designs)

In case you missed it, a short story by Eric Wilson appeared in the New York Times Sunday Styles (07/17/2011). It provides a brief update (such as it is) of the Innovative Design Protection and Piracy Prevention Act, f/k/a the Design Piracy Prohibition Act.

It seems that Congress may act this year (or it may not) on a watered down version of the previous version of the act, which, if passed, would require a designer to show that his/her design is truly original, that the copy is “substantially identical” (a hybrid of the “substantially similar” and “virtually identical” standards already applicable to copyright infringement claims), and that the copier had knowledge of the designer’s original work.

The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) and the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAfA) were split on whether to support or oppose the previous version of the legislation (CFDA supported the DPPA, saying that it would give protection to designers, while AAfA opposed DPPA, saying that it would be impractical, difficult to enforce, and could lead to frivolous lawsuits). After significant revisions, both organizations now support the bill.

It is difficult to tell whether Congress will act in this session. While there is broad industry support for the legislation, there are many other issues that Washington has to focus on. Stay tuned.