Costco Must Face IP Suit Over Alleged Ugg Slipper Knockoffs

Costco Wholesale Corp. failed to dodge a trade dress lawsuit brought by the designer of Ugg footwear over the retailer’s Kirkland Unisex Shearling Slipper design.

Deckers Outdoor Corp. sufficiently pleaded trade dress infringement and unfair competition claims to advance them in federal court, Judge Mark C. Scarsi ruled in an opinion for the US District Court for the Central District of California, denying Costco’s dismissal motion.

Deckers sued Costco and CVS Pharmacy Inc. in May for selling slippers that allegedly mimic the design of the Ugg Tasman—a model the shoe producer has sold for more than 20 years. The cases ...