Adwar Casting Sues Unique Settings for Copyright Infringement



Adwar Casting added additional claims and six defendants to its pending copyright infringement lawsuit against Unique Settings of New York.

Adwar first filed a complaint against Unique Settings of New York on April 12, 2010.

The complaint, which seeks $13 million in damages, claims Unique Settings purchased jewelry castings from Adwar from August 1999 through May 2007. Then, Adwar revoked permission to distribute, market, and sell Adwar’s jewelry from Unique Settings, at which time Adwar claims Unique Settings began to create, distribute, market, and sell infringing copies of Adwar’s designs.

In addition, Adwar alleges Unique Settings obtained the exclusive account number and password issued to an Adwar customer to access Adwar’s newest and exclusive styles and then copy designs.

Adwar is also suing Marlboro Diamond Plaza and Marlboro Diamond Castle of Marlboro, N.J., and Unique Settings owners Ozan Ekmel Anda, Dursun Kocak, and Joseph Ceylan for allegedly displaying infringing copies of Adwar’s jewelry. Maurice Payami, an owner of Marlboro Diamond Plaza, and Marlboro Diamond Castle, is also being sued.

Unique Settings strongly denied the charges, calling them “baseless.”

“We are confident that when the court looks at the facts, not merely the unfounded allegations, it will rule in favor of Unique and dismiss this lawsuit,” Mel Anda, president and CEO of Unique Settings of New York, said in a statement.

Anda’s statement noted the company is filing a counterclaim, seeking a declaratory judgment that the copyright registrations are “invalid and unenforceable.”

“All or most of the designs lack originality and are not even original to Adwar Casting, as they were created by others before the sale of such designs by Adwar Casting,” Anda said.

Unique Settings has also requested that the court direct the Copyright Office to cancel the copyright registrations for each of the designs.

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