Hailey Beiber's newly launched skincare line 'Rhode Skin' is facing a trademark infringement lawsuit in Manhattan federal court. She is being sued by the creators of a clothing line under the 'Rhode' trademark- Purna Khatau and Phoebe Vickers. The lawsuit asks for claiming trademark infringement and to block Bieber from marketing products under the name Rhode.
The claimants recognize that Hailey Beieber's middle name is Rhode and that may be behind the naming of the skincare line, but they find legal intervention necessary as Beiber is an influential celebrity and model with a wide social presence. The promotion of her brand by her husband, singer and artist Justin Beieber also threatens the business and sales of Khatau and Vicker's clothing line.
The pair additionally provides that Hailey Beieber had prior knowledge of the Rhode clothing line and its prior trademark rights as she made attempts to buy the RHODE trademark from them four years prior. The lawsuit states this situation to be a "textbook case of reverse
confusion in which a massive junior trademark user (Rhode Skincare) threatens to trample a smaller senior user's market (Rhode).
The clothing line started by the former college-roommate pair in 2013 is threatened by the famous model and celebrity. Khatau and Vickers state that their brand has already faced the
negative effects of the alleged trademark infringement as some consumers already believe that their 8-year old company is trading under Beiber's newly launched skincare line, for which she has also filed trademark applications to sell clothing.