Diesel Wins $11.8 Million in Trademark Dispute with Reality TV Stars

Ruling on a complaint filed by the Italian fashion brand in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in 2019, Judge Jennifer Rochon found that Sparks and Kiley’s Diesel Power Gear and DieselSellerz owe the denim maker damages for trademark infringement.

Last year, a New York federal court granted a partial summary judgment on Diesel’s trademark infringement, unfair competition and dilution claims against Sparks and Kiley, who starred on the Discovery Channel reality series, “Diesel Brothers.” The complaint was filed in reaction to apparel and other items sold by Diesel Power Gear, as well as its website, which were found to be “confusingly similar ‘in light of the way in which the marks are actually displayed in their purchasing context,’ including [DPG’s] use of the marks on its physical storefront and website domains.”

While the court had ruled that Diesel Power Gear violated Diesel’s trademark, the amount of its settlement fell far short of the denim maker’s request. Diesel argued that it was entitled to Diesel Power Gear’s net sales of $59.1 million, claiming the company hadn’t proved any deductible costs or expenses.

But Diesel Power Gear countered that its profits from apparel and other gear should be based on a smaller subset of sales and that business expenses should be deducted from that sum.

The court ruled that awarding Diesel the full amount of Diesel Power Gear’s profits would be excessive and instead reduced the net sales by 80 percent, resulting in the total settlement of $11.8 million. In making the judgment, Rochon said there was no evidence of actual consumer confusion between the two brands, and Diesel, which recently named a new North America CEO, did not present direct evidence of the trademark infringement damaging their business.

Diesel’s legal representatives, Epstein Drangel, LLC, declined to comment on the case.

While the ruling marks the end of this legal dispute, Diesel is being investigated by a Canadian authority over possible ties to forced labor.