Kim Kardashian is at the center of a “knockoff” furniture lawsuit.
The reality TV veteran has been named in court papers that accuse her of flaunting copycat versions of artist Donald Judd’s creations after she used interior design firm Clements Design to decorate her office space with what turned out to be lookalike pieces.
Documents obtained by Page Six say the Judd Foundation is claiming Clements “manufactured and sold knockoff versions” of Judd’s designs and then installed them in the star’s workspace.
They are also said to allege Clements used photos of the original Judd table and chairs in its proposal for Skims founder Kardashian “deceptively advertising that the works that would be provided to Ms. Kardashian were authorized, authentic Donald Judd furniture.”
The suit also reportedly states Kardashian’s fans and art connoisseurs would “expect Ms. Kardashian to own and display authentic — not fake — Donald Judd furniture and to have the real and true — not false — endorsements of celebrities, designers or artists with whom Ms. Kardashian discusses working or mentions by name.”
“These Donald Judd tables are really amazing and totally blend in with the seats,” Kardashian was seen saying in a now-deleted video posted in 2022 in which she gave a video tour of her office.
She uses the clip to show of a selection of minimalist wooden pieces that look similar to two Donald Judd designs, La Mansana Table 22 and Chair 84.
Clements Design has told Page Six the Judd Foundation’s claims “have absolutely no merit.”
“This issue was brought to our attention over a year ago,” the business said. “We communicated with the Judd Foundation’s counsel and explained to them in no uncertain terms that there were obvious key differences between the tables and chairs in Kim’s office and the Judd Foundation’s tables and chairs.”
“The Judd Foundation’s prior counsel acknowledged these differences and since then, we have not heard from them in over a year, and are now being blindsided with a lawsuit. Efforts were made to resolve this issue amicably at the time and the Judd Foundation was unwilling to settle on reasonable terms,” it added.
The Judd Foundation responded by telling Page Six Style it is “surprised” by the interior design firm’s claims that the parties attempted to settle the dispute before its legal move.
“Judd Foundation repeatedly attempted to gain clarity from Clements Design and Kim Kardashian about how and why they copied and promoted fake furniture as being authentically Donald Judd’s,” the organization said.
“The fact of the matter is that Clements Design sold Ms. Kardashian fake copies of the Donald Judd La Mansana Table and Donald Judd Chair 84, using Judd Foundation’s copyrighted photo to do so. Ms. Kardashian then promoted the furniture as being ‘Donald Judd’ to millions of her social media followers,” it added.
The foundation further added that as Clements allegedly refused to “take any steps to resolve this matter” and that it “reluctantly resorted to litigation to protect its intellectual property rights and the significance of Donald Judd’s timeless designs.”
