On December 28, 2018, Nirvana LLC brought suit against Marc Jacobs International, claiming copyright and trademark infringement. Nirvana LLC was formed back in 1997 by Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic, and the Cobain Estate controlled by Courtney Love.
Per the complaint, Nirvana argues that the Jacobs fashion brand has taken advantage of its image in misleading customers to believe Nirvana has endorsed or is otherwise associated with Jacobs’ “Bootleg Redux Grunge” collection. In particular, Jacobs has allegedly re-purposed the infamous “Smiley Face” logo created by Kurt Cobain back in 1991.
Additionally, Nirvana has alleged that the brand even went as far as to use lyrics from Nirvana, such as “Come As You Are,” in advertisements, as well as using a video of Nirvana performing “Smells Like Teen Spirit” on the official Marc Jacobs Tumblr page. While Nirvana has demanded an immediate cease and desist with regards to marketing and selling the infringing items, Jacobs has yet to comply.