Nike lawsuit come to an end

Warren Lotas and Nike have reached a settlement

Image via Complex Original

Nike and Warren Lotas' well-publicized legal battle over bootleg sneakers appears to have come to a resolution. Warren Lotas, a 25-year-old designer based in Los Angeles. His versions of the a version of the Nike Dunk SB designed specifically for skateboarding that first released in 2002. Nike filed suit against Lotas and his company L over his SB Dunk replicas, which the company considered to be "Illegal fakes." Lotas made the sneakers, which were near-mirrors of iconic Dunks including the "Pigeon," in November 2019. Price was $300 per pair on what he said was an initial run of 1,000 pairs. Before shipments start going out to customer it were stopped due to legal process. Nike accused the designer of being a "Bad actor" that "Undermine[s] the DNA of sneaker culture by promoting and selling fakes." In his defense, Lotas said his intentions had been misconstrued and that, as a small business owner, he was being bullied by a much larger corporation. The case started to pick up it popularity among sneaker heads. A flashpoint for the merits of so-called bootleg sneakers. Are the custom sneakers "Fakes" that deserve mockery in a culture where authenticity is key? Or are they worthy bespoke pieces that take inspiration from beloved sneakers? From a legal standpoint, the former view has won out - but individual consumers may still see merit in such designs. Who's going to offer up more riffs on Nike's designs when they've seen the legal consequences for doing so? It's likely changed from the incarnation he revealed earlier, lest Lotas is looking for more legal trouble.

As you can see above these are evidences that support Nike in the lawsuit.

References:

Dunne, B. (2020, December 11). Nike v. WARREN Lotas: The Bootleg dunks and their place in history. Complex. Retrieved September 28, 2021, from https://www.complex.com/sneakers/nike-warren-lotas-lawsuit-knockoff-dunks-history/.

Servantes, I. (2020, December 14). Warren Lotas and Nike have reached a settlement over his 'illegal FAKE' DUNKS. Input. Retrieved September 28, 2021, from https://www.inputmag.com/style/warren-lotas-nike-have-reached-a-settlement-over-his-illegal-fake-dunks.

Servantes, I. (2021, January 21). Nike isn't done being salty about Warren Lotas' fake DUNK SNEAKERS. Input. Retrieved September 28, 2021, from https://www.inputmag.com/style/nike-warren-lotas-fake-dunks-la-la-land-manufacturer-lawsuit.