Nirvana/Marc Jacobs Lawsuit: Judge Rules Copyright Case Can Move Forward

Nirvana's copyright lawsuit against fashion label Marc Jacobs will move forward per a ruling by U.S. District Court Judge John Kronstadt.

Billboard reports the ruling came down November 8 after Jacobs and fellow defendants Saks Incorporated and Neiman Marcus tried to file a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, which was originally filed in December 2018.

The lawsuit itself stems from Jacobs' alleged unauthorized use of the Nirvana happy face logo in his "Redux Grunge Collection." Attorneys for Jacobs argued that the case should be thrown out of court because the copyrighted Nirvana logo, "...includes the word 'Nirvana'. The Accused Products do not. The [copyrighted logo] includes the Flower Sniffin Writing. The Accused Products do not. The [copyrighted logo] includes a smiley face with Xs as eyes. The Accused Products do not; they use a different letter for each eye, the letters M and J, signifying Marc Jacobs."

Photos of the Nirvana happy face logo and the Jacobs version can be seen below.