LVMH secures landmark victory in US counterfeit case

LVMH has secured one of the largest ever payouts in a counterfeit case after winning a legal battle against US discount mall operator Westgate, which allowed the sale of tens of thousands of fake Louis Vuitton goods.

As first reported by The Fashion Law, the French luxury group filed its complaint more than two years ago after investigators found that Westgate was attempting to sell over 72,000 counterfeit Louis Vuitton items at a flea market sale. In total, more than 250,000 fake products were seized, which, if authentic, would have been worth tens of millions of dollars.

While it is unlikely that LVMH will ever receive the full 584 million dollars awarded, the ruling is widely seen as a precedent-setting case against counterfeiters and those who knowingly facilitate their trade in Western markets. According to Security Industry sources, the lawsuit stemmed from a 2021 Homeland Security Investigations raid that discovered counterfeit goods at 60 of the mall’s 62 booths. Similar actions have followed: last year Louis Vuitton also sued the Boulevard Mall in Las Vegas, accusing it of creating a “safe haven” for trademark infringement.

The case reflects a wider tightening of judicial attitudes toward counterfeiting in fashion. Just this year, France’s Court of Cassation reaffirmed the legal distinctiveness of Christian Louboutin’s red sole, ruling that the use of a Pantone-specific colour applied to a precise part of a shoe constitutes a protected trademark. The court held that even in a monochrome design, a red sole created a risk of confusion for the average consumer, underlining that counterfeiting is not simply an economic dispute but a criminal offence. Together with the Westgate ruling, such decisions demonstrate a more coordinated global approach: courts are increasingly willing to treat counterfeiting as a serious violation of intellectual property, with sanctions designed to deter operators as well as manufacturers.

Despite the scale of the damages awarded, legal experts caution that LVMH is unlikely to see the full amount, as mall operators often lack the liquidity to pay judgments of this size. Nonetheless, the reputational victory strengthens the group’s position in its long-running campaign to curb counterfeiting and to remind both consumers and retailers that enforcement will be pursued vigorously.