Hell’s Angels attempt to pop Red Bubble

Hells Angels recently lodged a Federal Court action against Red Bubble, an online t-shirt retailer.

The motorcycle club, which has a number of registered trade marks in Australia, including the words Hells Angels and the ‘death head’ logo, has sued the retailer, claiming that certain t-shirt designs and a poster offered for sale from the website had infringed its intellectual property rights.

One of the allegedly infringing items.

While Redbubble chief executive Martin Hosking pointed out that his company had attempted to settle the matter amicably, including by removing the allegedly offending items from the website, the self-described club of ‘motorcycle enthusiasts’  nonetheless forged ahead and is seeking compensation in the Federal Court, according to court documents.

Late last year, Redbubble’s barrister told the court that the club was in financial straits, according to its own tax returns, and sought orders for security for costs.

On 22 April this year, Dimitrios Eliades, the barrister for the Hells Angels, told the Federal Court that his client had managed to pull together $30,000 as payment of the security for costs so that the case could continue.

We will keep you posted.