ITC to investigate jeans brands over ‘fading patents’

Brands including Diesel, Levi Strauss and Abercrombie & Fitch could face an exclusion order after the US International Trade Commission (ITC) confirmed it has accepted a request for a patent investigation.

The ITC’s investigation will probe 20 brands famed for their ranges of jeans and will centre on claims of patent infringement related to laser technology used to apply designs to the items.

If the investigation goes against the companies, they could face an exclusion order banning their products from being imported into the US.

The complaint was filed by RevoLaze LLC and TechnoLines LLC, both Ohio-based companies, in August this year.

Both complainants had demanded that the ITC issues a general exclusion order, or in the alternative a limited exclusion order, as well as cease-and-desist orders.

They claimed their patents had been infringed when the jeans brands used laser technology to put graphics on clothes, specifically the fading effect used on jeans.

A list of brands subject to the investigation, which also includes American Eagle Outfitters, Gap and H&M, is available on the ITC’s website.

“By instituting this investigation, the USITC has not yet made any decision on the merits of the case. The USITC's chief administrative law judge will assign the case to one of the USITC's administrative law judges (ALJs),” the ITC said.

“The ALJ will make an initial determination as to whether there is a violation of section 337; that initial determination is subject to review by the commission,” it added.

The ITC will set a target date for completing its investigation within 45 days of it starting.

Orders in section 337 cases become final 60 days after their issuance unless they are rejected by the US Trade Representative for policy reasons within that time frame.