Double Diamond Distribution Ltd v Crocs Canada, 2024 FCA 204

On November 29, 2024, Crocs successfully defended two appeals in Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal. These appeals confirmed the validity of a Crocs industrial design that covered its MAMMOTH line of clogs, and confirmed that Double Diamond's knock-off Fleece Dawgs products infringed Crocs' industrial design.

These were appeals of a trial decision from 2022 where Crocs successfully asserted its Canadian industrial design against Double Diamond, and of a 2023 decision ordering Double Diamond to pay a portion of Crocs' legal costs.

The Federal Court of Appeal found that the Federal Court did not make any reviewable errors in its 2022 and 2023 decisions. The Federal Court of Appeal’s decision canvassed Double Diamond's infringement, the validity of Crocs' design, the granting to Crocs of an accounting of Double Diamond’s profits on its infringing product, and the award of legal costs to Crocs. The Trial Judge's findings on each of these matters was upheld, reinforcing the value of industrial design rights as an important business asset.

Crocs was represented by Gowling WLG's Alex Gloor and Jenny Hepditch.