A federal judge in Washington, D.C., has given a New York City clothing company more time to defend itself in a trademark infringement lawsuit by Delta Sigma Theta sorority.
The ruling reversed a default judgment in favor of the sorority, which accuses LaMith Designs Inc. of the unauthorized sale of jackets, shoes, scarves, bags and hats with Delta’s trademarks and service marks.
The suit said LaMith never contacted the sorority to request a license or authorization to market and sell the merchandise on its website and through its catalog.
The suit said the sorority’s code of conduct for vendors allows sales “solely to Delta members and solely at Delta-approved events” but claims that LaMith sold merchandise to non-members.
“Each year, Delta receives hundreds of requests from vendors seeking a license to sell products and merchandise” but approves “only those vendors who meet its licensing requirements,” it said.
The sorority seeks an injunction and compensatory and punitive damages.
Delta was established in 1913 at Howard University and now has more than 900 college and alumnae chapters in the United States and abroad.
