Lady Gaga scored a major legal win after a federal judge dismissed a trademark battle over Mayhem. Lost Surfboards had claimed that the pop star’s album, tour, and merchandise threatened its longstanding brand.
The ruling gave Gaga control over the name for her sprawling artistic project. It also delivered another blow to Lost International after an earlier injunction request failed.
A judge ruled Lost Surfboards failed to show Gaga’s ‘Mayhem’ use misled consumers
According to Law Commentary, U.S. District Judge Fernando M. Olguin dismissed Lost’s claims with prejudice on Tuesday. That decision meant the company could not simply revise its complaint again.
Lost Surfboards sued Lady Gaga in March 2025 over her use of Mayhem. The company argued that it had used the name for decades.
Lost International also owned trademark rights covering clothing and other merchandise. It claimed Gaga’s apparel could confuse consumers about the brands’ connection.
But Gaga’s lawyers argued that Mayhem functioned as the title of an expressive work. They invoked the First Amendment and the legal standard known as the Rogers test.
That standard offered creative works significant protection against trademark claims. A plaintiff generally needed to show an explicitly misleading use.
Judge Olguin found that Lost failed to meet that difficult threshold. Billboard reported that the judge rejected claims that Gaga made misleading statements about Lost.
“These allegations are conclusory and insufficient to constitute an explicit indication,” the judge wrote. He also rejected claims that the mark identified Lost as Gaga’s source.
“The use of a mark alone is not enough,” the judge continued. Nothing allegedly suggested an affirmative misrepresentation about Gaga’s work.
Lost had also argued that Gaga’s Mayhem merchandise changed the legal analysis. The court instead viewed the clothing and promotional products within the broader artistic project.
The judge had previously denied Lost a preliminary injunction in December. He had then found that the company likely could not win its trademark claim.
Lost later amended its lawsuit, but the new allegations still fell short. Gaga’s lawyers had also noted that the company identified no genuinely confused consumers.
Lost attorney Keith G. Bremer said the company “respectfully disagree” with the ruling. He added that Lost planned to appeal the decision to the Ninth Circuit.
TELL US – DO YOU THINK LOST SURFBOARDS SHOULD CONTINUE ITS TRADEMARK BATTLE AGAINST LADY GAGA?
