Beyoncé nears settlement in retailer suit
Singer Beyoncé is nearing a settlement with a Texas retailer she accused of ripping off her hit song “Single Ladies” to mislead customers into buying wedding hoodies and T-shirts, court documents show.
Singer Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter is nearing a settlement with a San Antonio retailer she accused of ripping off her hit song “Single Ladies” to mislead customers into buying wedding hoodies and T-shirts, court documents show.
Last week, U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan in New York granted Knowles-Carter’s request to cancel a hearing scheduled for Thursday so that lawyers for the Grammy Award-winning singer and the San Antonio company could complete settlement negotiations.
Both parties expect to resolve the lawsuit shortly and not go to trial, Knowles-Carter’s lawyer Marvin Putnam said in an Oct. 25 filing.
Knowles-Carter and her company BGK Trademark Holdings LLC sued San Antonio-based Feyoncé Inc. and three defendants — Andre Maurice, Leana Lopez and Lee Lee, all from San Antonio — in April 2016, accusing them of misleading shoppers who thought the brand was associated with her.
Among the items available on FeyonceShop.com, no longer active, were T-shirts, sweatshirts and tank tops with the Feyoncé moniker and a mug that reads “FEYONCÉ: HE PUT A RING ON IT” — which lawyers for KnowlesCarter and BGK claimed was a reference to the “Single Ladies” chorus, “If you liked it, then you should have put a ring on it.”
The settlement terms weren’t clear Wednesday morning. Putnam did not immediately return a call and email requesting comment. Efforts to reach Maurice, Lopez and Lee were unsuccessful.