Louboutin vs Amazon: the CJUE rules in favour of Louboutin

[29/12/2022]

In the dispute between the famous shoe brand Louboutin and Amazon, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled on the responsibility of the marketplace in its preliminary judgement of 22 December 2022 (C- 148/21 et C- 184/21, Louboutin c. Amazon).

The CJUE considers indeed that Amazon may be held responsible for the advertisement and sale of fake Louboutin products by third-party sellers on its platform if “a reasonably observant and circumspect online consumer has an impression that it is Amazon which markets, in its name and on its behalf the infringing products”.

In light of this ruling, the case will now be brought to the national courts in Belgium and Luxembourg.

This decision, which is contrary to the DAVIDOFF case that we commented on in 2020, could pave the way for new case law in matter of liability of online marketplaces.

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