Helen Vanvakaris v. Fashion Forms, Inc.

I.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Defendant Fashion Forms, Inc., sells undergarments and accessories. Compl. [Doc. # 1] at ¶ 7. Plaintiff modeled Defendant’s products in photographs for use in product packaging, websites, and other advertisements on several occasions. Id. at ¶¶ 8-9. Plaintiff claims that, for each “photo production,” she and Defendant entered into an agreement the terms of which included a one-year licensing period “from the date of the first use of her image, but commencing no later than three months after the photo production.” Id. at ¶ 8. Plaintiff alleges that Defendant photographed her for the final time in or about October 2017 and its license to use her image expired in or about October 2018. Id. at ¶ 9. She claims that Defendant continued to use her image in products and advertising without her consent after the license expired. Id. at ¶¶ 9–10, 12.

Plaintiff filed a Complaint for statutory and common law misappropriation of likeness against Defendant in Los Angeles County Superior Court on June 27, 2019. Id. at 6. She then served the Summons and Complaint on Defendant by certified mail on July 29, 2019. Notice of Removal…