Melbourne burger joint on front foot against Ye lawsuit

The artists formerly known as Kanye West seems to have dropped a lawsuit against a Melbourne burger restaurant.

Ye, as he is now known, filed a lawsuit against College Dropout Burgers and its owner Mark Elkhouri in October last year.

The rapper alleged the business had engaged in “misleading or deceptive” conduct.

“Ye has developed a valuable reputation and substantial goodwill in Australia,” Ye’s lawyer Bill Ladas said.

However, the case seems to have stalled with Ye no longer speaking with his lawyers.

Court documents obtained by NCA NewsWire, accused the business of profiting off the rapper’s fame, infringing on Ye’s “trade indica”, by using names, logos and promotional material associated with the controversial rapper.

College Dropout Burgers is accused of profiting from the name of Ye’s album The College Dropout. It is also alleged the restaurant uses a cartoon bear, which allegedly infringes on Ye’s frequently used Dropout Bear.

“Ye has sold more than 140 million records internationally and is one of the best-selling artists of all time,” the documents say.

“Ye has suffered, and will continue to suffer, loss and damage.”

The lawsuit alleges the Ivanhoe establishment failed to act on any legal threats made prior to the suit.

Lawyers for College Dropout Burgers and Elkhouri have denied the material used by the restaurant infringes on Ye’s trademarks.

“The College Dropout Burgers™ name references both Ye’s first album, as well as our origins as a business that started on a university campus here in Melbourne,” the document says.

“We pay homage to him with the names of some of our dishes, but of course he has no association with our business.”

Ye has taken no further action since the initial filing, while Elkhouri lawyer, Craig Smith SC, will seek dismissal of the case.

The matter is slated to return to court on 3 March.

Jonathan Jackson - 14-2-23