Ivanka ordered to testify in dispute with shoe company
AP, New York :
Ivanka Trump must testify in a dispute with an Italian shoemaker over one of her company’s shoe designs, a judge said Friday.
U.S. District Judge Katherine Forrest rejected a request by the senior White House aide’s lawyers that she be blocked from submitting to a deposition in the trademark infringement lawsuit brought by Aquazzura Italia SRL against her and her company IT Collection LLC.
The Florence, Italy-based company sued President Donald Trump’s daughter last year, saying her Hettie shoe was a “virtually identical” knockoff of its popular Wild Thing Shoe, including nearly the same color, shape and tassel on the heel. Its lawsuit seeks unspecified damages.
The judge says Ivanka Trump must submit to questions posed during a deposition lasting no more than two hours, “given Ms. Trump’s competing professional obligations,” and occurring in Washington, if that’s Trump’s preference. The judge said the deposition should occur by the end of October on a mutually acceptable schedule.
In ruling, the judge said “Ms. Trump’s public statements regarding active and comprehensive brand management lead to a reasonable inference that the shoe at issue would not have been released without her approval.”
Ivanka Trump must testify in a dispute with an Italian shoemaker over one of her company’s shoe designs, a judge said Friday.
U.S. District Judge Katherine Forrest rejected a request by the senior White House aide’s lawyers that she be blocked from submitting to a deposition in the trademark infringement lawsuit brought by Aquazzura Italia SRL against her and her company IT Collection LLC.
The Florence, Italy-based company sued President Donald Trump’s daughter last year, saying her Hettie shoe was a “virtually identical” knockoff of its popular Wild Thing Shoe, including nearly the same color, shape and tassel on the heel. Its lawsuit seeks unspecified damages.
The judge says Ivanka Trump must submit to questions posed during a deposition lasting no more than two hours, “given Ms. Trump’s competing professional obligations,” and occurring in Washington, if that’s Trump’s preference. The judge said the deposition should occur by the end of October on a mutually acceptable schedule.
In ruling, the judge said “Ms. Trump’s public statements regarding active and comprehensive brand management lead to a reasonable inference that the shoe at issue would not have been released without her approval.”
