Court bans 'sexy little thing'

January 12, 2006 - 12:33PM


Not just anybody can call themselves a "sexy little thing," a Manhattan court had ruled.

Sports Illustrated swimsuit model Audrey Quock was blocked from launching her own line of panties emblazoned as "sexy little things" when US District Judge Harold Baer ruled in New York yesterday that Victoria's Secret could sue her for trademark infringement.

Baer said that Victoria's Secret appeared to acquire priority in the trademark use of "Sexy Little Things" because it had used the label on lingerie since July 28, 2004.

The judge refused a request by Quock to declare that Victoria's Secret had no right to stop her from launching a line of women's underwear called "Sexy Little Things".

Quock appeared in the sports magazine's annual swimsuit issue between 1998 and 2003 and has been featured in other magazines and advertising campaigns. She and publicist Ronit Menashe said in the lawsuit that they came up with the term "Sexy Little Things, Sexy Little Things" in July or August 2004 and registered a domain name to build a website.

After sending a manufacturer diagrams for the production of "Sexy Little Things" labels and preparing publicity, the pair received a letter from Victoria's Secret telling them their line would constitute trademark infringement.

The women then stopped development of the clothing line and sought relief in court, saying no one had registered the trademark when they checked with the US Patent and Trademark Office in September 2004.

The judge ruled after hearing evidence that the Victoria's Secret marketing department settled on the name "Sexy Little Things" for its panties collection between March 2004 and June 2004.

After hearing evidence in the case last month, the judge said he concluded that the phrase "sexy little things" was suggestive, entitling it to greater legal protection than if it were merely descriptive.

"While the term describes the erotically stimulating quality of the trademarked lingerie, it also calls to mind the phrase 'sexy little thing,' popularly used to refer to attractive lithe young women," the judge wrote in a 17 page ruling.

AP