The Case Archive
Every lawsuit, fine, and recall on file: trademark, copyright, counterfeiting, antitrust, bankruptcy, and product safety. Each entry gives the court, the docket number, the firms where they are public, and what happened.
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Who created Kuromi?
The studio that animated the 2005 "Onegai My Melody" series says one of its animators, Tomoko Miyakawa, designed Kuromi, and that Sanrio’s 2023 book "The Secrets of Kuromi" credited the character to Hello Kitty designer Yuko Yamaguchi instead. Studio Comet sued in 2024 over the credit.
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Showing 24 of 24 matters
| No. | Case | Type | Forum | Filed | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 001 | Studio Comet Co., Ltd. v. Sanrio Company, Ltd. Studio Comet v. Sanrio · Sanrio as defendant | Authorship | Japan (court not identified in English-language reporting) | 2024 | Ongoing | Open |
| 002 | Mercis B.V. v. Sanrio Co., Ltd. Miffy v. Cathy · Sanrio as defendant | Copyright | District Court of Amsterdam | 2010 | Settled | Open |
| 003 | European Commission v. Sanrio Co., Ltd. (Case AT.40432) EU geo-blocking fine · Sanrio as respondent | Antitrust | European Commission, DG Competition | 2017 | Decided | Open |
| 004 | Sanrio Co. Ltd v. EUIPO (Miroglio Fashion intervening) SANRIO CHARACTERS v. CARACTÈRE · Sanrio as applicant | Trademark | General Court of the European Union (Second Chamber) | 2022 | Decided | Open |
| 005 | Sanrio Company Ltd. v. Río Luna, S.L. et al. HOLA GATO · Sanrio as plaintiff | Trademark | Provincial Court of Alicante, sitting as EU Trade Mark Court | — | Decided | Open |
| 006 | Sanrio Co. Ltd v. Dong-A Pencil Co. Ltd KITTY (Korea) · Sanrio as plaintiff | Trademark | Seoul High Court | — | Decided | Open |
| 007 | Sanrio Company Limited v. Edgar C. Lim (Orignamura Trading) Orignamura (Philippines) · Sanrio as plaintiff | Counterfeiting | Supreme Court of the Philippines (First Division) | 2002 | Decided | Open |
| 008 | Sanrio Co., Ltd. v. Lin Cheng-pin (Hung Sheng Fashion Co.) Hung Sheng (Taiwan) · Sanrio as plaintiff | Counterfeiting | Taiwan High Court (Civil) | 1998 | Decided | Open |
| 009 | Sanrio Company, Ltd. & Sanrio, Inc. v. DLI pochacco.com · Sanrio as plaintiff | Domain (UDRP) | WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center | 2000 | Decided | Open |
| 010 | Sanrio Company, Ltd. & Sanrio, Inc. v. Neric Lau sanriosurprises.com · Sanrio as plaintiff | Domain (UDRP) | WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center | 2000 | Decided | Open |
| 011 | Sanrio Company Ltd. v. Song Chen and Chowbus Chowbus hellokittyktv.com · Sanrio as plaintiff | Domain (UDRP) | WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center | 2025 | Decided | Open |
| 012 | Sanrio, Inc. v. Cherilyn Holden & Kristi Musick (d/b/a Definitely Diva) Definitely Diva pageant · Sanrio as plaintiff | Copyright | U.S. federal court, Oklahoma | 2012 | Filed | Open |
| 013 | Research In Motion Ltd. v. Sanrio Company, Ltd. MOMOBERRY v. BLACKBERRY · Sanrio as respondent | Trademark | USPTO Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) | 2008 | Settled | Open |
| 014 | Disney Enterprises, DC Comics & Sanrio, Inc. v. The Party Animals LLC Party Animals costumes · Sanrio as plaintiff | Counterfeiting | U.S. District Court, Central District of California | 2012 | Filed | Open |
| 015 | David Weisman v. Sanrio Far East Company Weisman v. Sanrio Far East · Sanrio as defendant | Copyright | U.S. District Court, Central District of California | 2011 | Closed | Open |
| 016 | Dudnikov v. Sanrio, Incorporated Dudnikov (Tabberone) · Sanrio as defendant | Copyright | U.S. District Court, District of Colorado | 2004 | Settled | Open |
| 017 | Julissa Cota v. Sanrio, Inc. Cota (ADA access) · Sanrio as defendant | Disability access | U.S. District Court, Southern District of California | 2021 | Settled | Open |
| 018 | Halperin (Liquidating Trustee) v. Sanrio, Inc. High Ridge clawback · Sanrio as defendant | Bankruptcy | U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Delaware | 2021 | Closed | Open |
| 019 | Ormat International v. Sanrio, Inc. Ormat (contract) · Sanrio as defendant | Contract | U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida | 1992 | Closed | Open |
| 020 | Lipner v. Sanrio, Incorporated Lipner (libel) · Sanrio as defendant | Defamation | U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida | 2003 | Closed | Open |
| 021 | Duke Salisbury v. Sanrio Incorporated Salisbury (adversary) · Sanrio as defendant | Bankruptcy | U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California | 1995 | Closed | Open |
| 022 | Sanrio Company, Ltd. v. J.I.K. Accessories, Inc. J.I.K. Accessories · Sanrio as plaintiff | Trademark | U.S. District Court, Northern District of California | 2009 | Closed | Open |
| 023 | CPSC & Sanrio, Inc. — Mascot Plushes recall Mascot Plushes recall · regulatory | Product recall | U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission | 1998 | Closed | Open |
| 024 | CPSC & McDonald's — Hello Kitty whistle recall Happy Meal whistle recall · regulatory | Product recall | U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (with Health Canada) | 2014 | Closed | Open |
This catalogues the notable matters. Sanrio is a prolific enforcer and files many additional routine counterfeiting suits each year, often against anonymous online sellers, that are not individually listed here.
Reference
How to read a docket
Each case file opens with a caption: the parties, with the plaintiff (who sued) on top and the defendant below, joined by the bracket and a v. The docket number is the court’s file number. In US federal courts it looks like 1:23-cr-00119: the office, the year, a type code (cv civil, cr criminal, ap bankruptcy adversary), and a sequence number.
Claims are the legal theories. Holding or outcome is how it ended: a judgment, a settlement, a dismissal, or, at an agency, a fine or a transfer. Where a field reads not public, the record exists but the detail is not online. We do not fill those gaps with guesses.