Attorneys with Hueston Hennigan, on behalf of Kelly Toys, have filed a lawsuit against Build-a-Bear Workshop in what they describe as a “straightforward case of trade dress and copyright infringement” for an alleged copycat of its “Squishmallow” toys, according to the complaint filed this week in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
Kelly Toys alleges Build-a-Bear’s own “Skoosherz” toys were created to evoke an association with the word “Squish,” amounting to a deliberate copycat. The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles, raises trade dress infringement under both the Lanham Act and common law, as well as California Statutory Unfair Competition.
