A federal judge has awarded ECBAWM client Kristen Visbal a partial victory in a lawsuit over her iconic sculpture “Fearless Girl.” Installed on Broad Street across from the New York Stock Exchange in March of 2017, “Fearless Girl” quickly became a symbol of the international women’s movement.

The current legal proceedings stem from claims by State Street Global Advisors Trust Company (SSGA), a wholly-owned subsidiary of State Street Corporation with $3.5 trillion in assets under management. SSGA alleges that it commissioned “Fearless Girl” and that Visbal’s subsequent works have violated SSGA’s intellectual property rights. Visbal denies SSGA’s claims entirely.

In ruling on the parties’ summary judgment motions, United States District Court Judge Gregory H. Woods held that certain sales of Visbal’s subsequent work did not violate any contracts with SSGA and that SSGA had failed to state a claim for anticipatory breach, breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, direct copyright infringement, and vicarious copyright infringement. The Court also denied SSGA’s requests for summary judgment on Visbal’s counterclaims for breach of implied covenant and wrongful injunction. A number of remaining claims will now proceed to trial.

“This is a David and Goliath battle between the female artist who created ‘Fearless Girl’ and a trillion-dollar company,” said Ilann M. Maazel, one of the attorneys representing Visbal. “Truth is on our side. We look forward to a jury trial in this case.”

Kristen Visbal is represented by ECBAWM attorneys Ilann M. Maazel, Zoe Salzman, Vasudha Talla and David Berman.

Press
“‘Fearless Girl’ Sculptor Defeats Some Claims Over Replica Sales,” Bloomberg Law