Barbie Beats Up On The Bratz! (UPDATED)

If there was ever a need for a clear work-for-hire agreement, it was here. Barbie has just won a major lawsuit against the Bratz. We covered this story not too long ago, but here’s the result, from the WSJ and the BBC.

WSJ: Mattel Inc. and its iconic Barbie doll won a fierce legal battle Thursday when a federal jury in Riverside, Calif., found that rival MGA Entertainment Inc.’s popular Bratz dolls, which have undercut Barbie sales in recent years, were conceived while their designer was employed by Mattel.

BBC: It means that Mattel could be awarded millions of dollars when the jury comes to consider damages. MGA Entertainment could even be stopped from selling the popular large-headed, multi-ethnic, urban fashion dolls. Mattel had claimed that the name and design of Bratz dolls were based on drawings done by Carter Bryant while he was under a contract that entitled the world’s biggest toymaker to his designs.

We’re kicking ourselves for not having bought Mattel stock!

UPDATE: July 28, 2008:

Thanks to some racially insensitive comments, a juror from this case was removed last week. The Bratz have now asked for a mistrial claiming these insensitive comments sparked and spearheaded the decision against the Bratz. Specifically, the juror made slurs about the ethnicity of Isaac Larian, the Jewish, Iranian-born CEO of MGA, maker of Bratz.

From today’s WSJ:

A few more details emerged over the weekend: According to the LA Times, a court order said the juror remarks characterized Iranians as “stubborn, rude” and as “thieves” who have “stolen other person’s ideas.” The remarks were made during deliberations in the first phase of the trial that found Larian had aided a Mattel Barbie designer, Carter Bryant, who created the Bratz concept in violation of his Mattel contract.

MGA (the loser and “owner” of the Bratz) asked that the court declare a mistrial, wiping out Mattel’s victory. The motion will be heard when court reconvenes Aug. 4. More here.