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Justin Bieber received a cease-and-desist notice from French duo Justice over his upcoming album titled “Justice.” The duo, Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay, argued that Bieber’s album cover font is too similar to Justice’s trademarked “cross” logo.
Bieber announced his album on February 26. Fans of Justice and the label, Ed Banger Records, reacted, arguing that the “t” on Bieber’s album cover resembles Justice’s stylized cross logo.
On March 10th, Justice’s council sent a cease-and-desist letter to Bieber’s legal team. The letter called for a terminating use of “Justice” and “cross,” which is trademarked in France and the European Union. The duo argued that the trademark applies in the United States because they sell merchandise and performed in the United States.
The letter argued the use of their trademark qualifies as infringement and “trademark dilution.” Justice requested immediate legal action and damages, which includes punitive and injustice relief.
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As stated in the cease-and-desist letter, “your use of the Mark is illegal. You have not received permission from Justice to utilize the Mark.” The duo went on to state that the album is not affiliated, sponsored, or in collaboration with Justice.
The letter also included an email sent on April 29, 2020, from Bieber’s team to Justice’s team. The email stated, “We’re trying to track down the designer who did the below logo for Justice. Was hoping you could help point me in the right direction.”
“I’m available to discuss about the logo design sometime next week,” the Justice designer responded to Bieber’s team. Justice’s management claimed that Bieber and his team stopped communicating with them after the initial email. Justice’s designer declined the request for comment.
“Given that we have received emails from them where a member of [Bieber’s] management team specifically attached the Justice logo and asked to connect with the Justice logo designer; they mentioned it was to work on a Justin Bieber project, they did not give us any details about it, no mention of an album called ‘Justice’ or a logo using the word ‘Justice,’” reported Justice co-manager John Scholz.
Bieber’s album dropped on March 19 and is releasing a new clothing line. The clothing line includes a cross on the front similar to the cross on Bieber’s album cover. Specifically, the “Justice Cross Hoodie,” which fans argue is comparable to Justice’s font used for their film, Iris: A Space Opera.
Bieber’s team responded to the letter stating that his logo and clothing line did not infringe on the trademark.
