Vadna Novak loses in court. He felt cheated about the golden bell

“Vanda Novak is a marriage of tradition and modernity. Designs that pay homage to Slavic heritage meet the needs of a modern, cosmopolitan woman. Shoes with a perfect form – full of sex appeal, and at the same time extremely functional and comfortable. Made of the best quality components imported from Italy, assembled in Poland by experienced craftsmen” – this is how Dominika Nowak writes about the brand she created.

Taking care of your interests, her company sued another company for copyright infringement of the bell pin. In practice, it is a golden bell that stands out from the rest of the heel.

The Vanda Novak company demanded security in the form of a ban on the sale of black and brown ankle boots with a stiletto topped with a cylindrical gold bell to its competitors. And there was a surprising twist in this case.

Everything is going according to plan

Courts agree to injunctive relief when a party demonstrates the likelihood of winning the case. AND The District Court in Warsaw, XXII Intellectual Property Division, on October 9, 2025, grants the security requested by Dominika Nowak's company.

It prohibits the production and sale, including online, of black and brown ankle boots with a high heel ending with a gold bell, as in the image below.

Court it also decides to seize the defendant's shoes until the final conclusion of the proceedings. In general, these are shoes with the following features:

a) slender form of a “stiletto” heel (“stiletto”);

b) the lower part of the heel is equipped with a cylindrical, bell-shaped element in a contrasting color, covering the heel directly above the heel;

c) the use of a heel, visually separated from the heel shaft by the indicated bell-shaped cylindrical element.

However, the defendant company appeals against this decision, and the court On December 11, 2025, he changed his mind 180 degrees, revoked the security order and dismissed the application in this case in its entirety.

The court changes its mind because it feels cheated

Both cases were heard by one judge, Krzysztof Kurosz. So how is it possible that he first granted the security in October and then revoked it in December?

As we read in the justification, the October decision “was also based on a negative premise, not expressed in the content of the application and justification, but necessary to obtain protection. This reason was that this form of heel had not appeared before. […] In the context of an authorized professional in the field of design and fashion – it would be extremely unlikely that she would not know about the achievements of other famous shoe designers“.

Dominika Nowak studied art history in Krakow, then studied at the legendary Studio Berçot in Paris, which shaped famous designers, and in 2023 was incorporated into the Paris College of Art.

In the application for security, Vanda Novak argued that the heel was a reflection of the personality of its creator, Dominika Nowak. And the court acted “in confidence in the evidence presented by the applicant, assessing whether a given human product meets the hallmarks of originality (whether it is a work), whether the application is coherent and provided with appropriate evidence.”

See also: Warsaw luxury boutique at the center of a scandal. The clients were left without money

The golden bell has been known since the early 20th century.

In the complaint, the defendant company presented evidence clearly proving that identical or almost identical heel shape and a list of its elements appears in the designs of recognized European footwear manufacturers from since the early years of the 20th centurythrough the 1970s and 1980s, until today.

Dominika Nowak's contribution “in the case of this specific heel covered by the application consists in the use of the standard black color of the upper part of the heel and its standard shape (this does not constitute a manifestation of creative activity of an individual nature). Without denying the high aesthetic values ​​of the heel covered by the application, it should be concluded that it is a variation on a well-known motif from earlier years, the individual character of which does not meet the minimum level of copyright protection,” we read in the justification.

Judge Kurosz also points out that in European judgments regarding copyright (classification of footwear or its elements as a work), courts examine whether there were arbitrary choices and a creative approach.

He refers to the judgment of the Court of Appeal in Paris of September 18, 2024, in which the famous women's Christian Louboutin high heels with a red sole were considered a work of art. They are protected not only as a trademark (judgment of the CJEU of 12 June 2018 in case C-163/16), but also as a work of authorship.

The case of the Vandy Novak company is true characteristic heel finished with a bell element in a color contrasting to the color of the pin, but she did not create it. This is why, although Dominika Nowak's company achieved success thanks to it, it cannot prohibit others from using this idea.

Vanda Novak defends her originality

The Vanda Novak company, in response to Business Insider's questions about the court's decision, emphasizes that its the objections concern not only the significant similarity of the heels themselves, but also the way of presenting and promoting the productswhich shows clear similarities with the aesthetics developed by the Vanda Novak brand.

“The introduction of Carinia products to the market was met with clear signals from the brand's customers, pointing to noticeable similaritieswhich directly contributed to taking legal steps and initiating court proceedings,” the company informs.

He emphasizes that the arguments put forward by the competing company are unjustified.

“Claims regarding the lack of originality of the heels designed and used by Vanda Novak are in contradiction with the achievements of the brand, which is the only one in Poland that consistently operates in the premium footwear segment, basing its visual identification and product offer on the characteristic heel designed by Dominika Nowak. Individual examples of historical footwear designs by other authors cited by the competition had no influence on Dominika Nowak's creative process and can at most be assessed as similar, not identical,” she emphasizes company.

In her opinion, “the shape, colors, materials used and other features influencing both the aesthetics and functionality of Vanda Novak footwear clearly demonstrate its original character and the brand's established market position.”

The company also emphasizes that the proceedings regarding the security have no impact on the course of the main case, which is heard independently.