Posts with tag legal

It's a tough world we live in -- theft, murder...and baggy pants. Clearly someone has to put a stop to this menace, and what better way to spend police time than to arrest people whose trousers sag below their waist?

After revealing your undies was deemed unlawful in Louisiana, and some college kid (and his entire family) got arrested over a pair of ill-fitting slacks in Florida, it's really no surprise that Flint, Michigan Chief of Police, David Dicks, has ordered officers to remain vigilant in defending the public against unsightly butt cracks. He told the local paper that "This immoral self-expression goes beyond free speech," and has thus been deemed "indecent exposure" (which is an offense that warrants arrest).

So, It seems that some style fouls are so bad that they can't be handled by the fashion police -- you have to call the actual police instead. Go figure. You get 'em, Dicks!

[via Neatorama]

People laugh at Patrick Dempsey in his spandex biker shorts. Shock. [Page Six]

Check out Gwyneth Paltrow as a porcelain doll on the May issue of Vogue. [ShinyStyle]

Etiquette Checker -- never have bad breath on a date again! [productdose]

Gasp! The fashion industry uses sweatshops! New documentary will make people freak out, wish they were doing something about the problem, then forget about it on their way to buy cute designer knock-offs at Target. [Catwalk Queen]

The only way to wear white tennis shoes. [Hypebeast]

Dudes: read this before picking out your spring jacket. [Refinery29]

Don't gain weight ladies, you'll never fit into this chair, perfectly molded to some model's butt. [Gizmodo]

France might outlaw "inciting thinness." [AP]

A few months ago towns around the country started turning the real police into fashion police, and arresting kids who let their pants sag halfway down their butts. I can only imagine if Marky Mark was still performing as a musician -- it'd be hysterical to watch him get arrested for dropping his pants in front of thousands of screaming junior high girls.

But anyway, believe it or not, people really are getting arrested because of their pants -- like Frances Leger, a 20-year-old business student at Florida State University who'd been banned from a local mall for letting his underwear hang out. When Leger decided to ignore the ban, deputies came to arrest him. When he and his family resisted, all hell broke loose.

We're talking 20 deputies, two canine units, and a police helicopter surrounding the mall -- just to make sure this fashion disaster was dealt with.

Wow. Remind me to dress really nice the next time I go to Florida. I don't want the SWAT team hauling me off to prison for bad taste.

And speaking of dressing nice, if you need to ditch those baggy trouser before they get you picked up by the police, check out the hot new looks for the year ahead:

Wouldn't it be awesome to be a celebrity? Not only is everyone trying to give you their products for free -- so you'd never have to buy anything ever again -- sometimes they'll even pay you money just to say you like it. Amazing!

Although, as Teri Hatcher recently learned, the down side is that those gifts often come with strings attached -- $2.4 million strings, to be exact. That's how much Hydroderm skincare is suing the actress for, claiming that she hasn't been endorsing their products exclusively. To quote the court papers: "Hatcher's name, image and likeness have been linked to so many competitors' products (at least 17!) that it is anyone's guess as to what product keeps her skin and lips youthful."

Zing! However, Hatcher and her crack pot team of legal experts have fired back, saying "Hydroderm has embarked on this unjustified and public assault on Teri Hatcher's name, reputation and celebrity in a transparent effort to distract from its own failure to live up to its end of the agreement."

Double zing! There's really no way of knowing who's lying when it comes to this sort of thing, so we'll have to wait for the judges decision. My guess? Both Hatcher and the skincare company will get sick of the bad press and handle it quietly out of court.

But let's hope not -- reading the statements back and forth is like watching a boxing match! I love it!

Do you watch gossip TV or red carpet events, screaming at the television because all those fancy-shmancy celebrity types are stealing your fashion? Or do you have an ex-best "friend" who's suddenly started showing up at all your favorite vintage shops, ripping off your look?

You're not alone. Nicolle O'Neill, a narcissistic psycho California-based fashionista, thinks Paris Hilton has stolen her personal style -- and is subsequently suing the heiress for some ridiculous sum of money. According to O'Neill, Hilton infringed upon her fashion "patens" (sic) -- like the ingenious idea of publicly exposing her underwear, for instance -- and has caused severe "emotional distress" in the process.

Finally! I've known Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Jake Gyllenhaal, and the rest of the snooty Hollywood types have been stealing my personal fashion for years. Thanks to Ms. O'Neill's courageous legislation, maybe the rest of us can finally take a stand against this obvious injustice.

Or not.

Check out our Paris Hilton gallery: has she been stealing from you too?

Sure, 'Shiloh' is not the most popular baby name in the world, but does obscurity give Angelina Jolie and her daughter Shiloh blah blah blah Jolie-Pitt the right to trademark it?

Symine Salimpour certainly doesn't think so. Symine Salimpour's company Hors Lá Monde has created a perfume of the very same famous baby name. To protect her daughter's name, Jolie filed a notice of opposition with the U.S. Trademark and Patent Office.

"The notice of opposition alleges that you will be damaged by the pending trademark," says Thomas M. Wilentz, a trademark attorney in New York City. "Angelina must feel that people applying for 'Shiloh' need to get her consent."

An insider close to Salimpour says the perfume has been in development for nearly two years, so it was obviously not named after the Shiloh of Brangelina fame. "The name is completely unrelated," the insider says. "Symine is citizen of both France and Israel, but she identifies strongly with her Israeli roots - it's a spiritual thing for her. Shiloh is a Hebrew name that means 'his gift.'"

What do you think? Should celebrities be allowed to trademark their children's names?

[via Post Chronicle]

Copyright law has been on the tip of a number of designer's tongues these last few years with knock-off versions of everything from handbags to dresses readily available for purchase at fraction of their original cost. Diane Von Furstenberg, one of the most outspoken critiques of knock-off culture, has decided to put her money where her mouth is by taking Forever21 to court.

In question are a couple of F21 dresses that closely resemble pieces from Von Furstenberg's 2006 spring collection. DVF's position is explained in legal papers acquired by WWD, which state: Without authorization or license from DVF, Forever 21 has produced and is marketing, advertising, distributing, offering for sale and selling dresses nearly identical to DVF's Cerisier and Aubrey dresses that bear print designs identical to the DVF copyrights. Von Furstenberg is asking Forever21 to recall the dresses as well as provide financial compensation to her company for the violation of copyright laws.

I have to say I don't exactly feel bad for Von Furstenberg. I suppose her case has merit, but legal action in general makes her seem like a greedy megalomaniac. Seriously, does a company that sells $400 it-dresses to women all over the world really need compensation from a company that sells low-quality versions to poor girls like me? Isn't imitation the best form of flattery?

[via Vogue.co.uk]