Lucasfilm is suing Andrew Ainsworth in a British court over the latter’s manufacture and sale of replica Star Wars uniforms, specifically Storm Trooper helmets and armor. Ainsworth was originally hired to make those costumes for the first Star Wars film, and is believed to have made £30,000 for his work at that time. Four years ago, he began making his recreations from the original molds at his Shepperton Design Studios in Twickenham, south-west London.
Lucasfilm already won a judgment worth some $20 million in a US court, but needs a victory in the British High Court in order to enforce the order, since Ainsworth lives in Britain. Ainsworth claims the design rights have expired. He is also countersuing for a share of the billions Star Wars merchandising has brought in over the last three deecades.
This article in the Telegraph quotes Lucasfilm’s counsel, Michael Bloch, in his opening statement: “You will hear a lot about helmets and armour. There are no helmets; there is no armour. As far as we know, indeed, there are no half-human, half-cloned warriors such as stormtroopers.
“What we are dealing with are characters of the imagination. They are no more and no less part of a fantastic world than would be a Centaur or Cyclops or Methuselah. It is the stuff of fantasy which may be relevant when one considers the issue of whether they are works of sculpture or artistic craftsmanship.”
The referenced article details the spectacle of the trial, which is expected to last 10 days.