Austin Fashion Week Faces Trademark Lawsuit Filed in New York Court
A Lanham Act complaint filed March 24 in New York names Austin Fashion Week as defendant in a trademark dispute that arrives just weeks before its May 2026 runway schedule.
A federal trademark complaint targeting Austin Fashion Week was filed in the Southern District of New York on March 24, 2026, drawing one of Texas fashion's most recognized event names into a legal dispute with runway season approaching fast. Quinteros Marquina brought the action under the Lanham Act as case number 1:26-cv-02386, naming Austin Fashion Week and additional defendants.
The Lanham Act governs federal trademark rights and gives holders grounds to pursue claims for infringement and false designation of origin. For fashion events, the stakes are concrete: the "Fashion Week" designation carries real commercial weight in designer registrations, sponsorship agreements, ticket revenue, and press coverage, making the name itself worth litigating in federal court.
Victor Quinteros Marquina operates under the Fashion Week Group umbrella and has maintained a web and social media presence for Austin Fashion Week, with that presence tied to a claimed 2007 founding and New York offices. Filing in the Southern District of New York, one of the most active federal venues for intellectual property matters, reflects the plaintiff's New York-based operations rather than the Texas geography of the defendant.
The named defendant uses the Austin Fashion Week name to stage events in Texas, with a spring 2026 runway season confirmed for May 7 through 9 at The Domain in Austin. The event describes itself as Central Texas's primary fashion organization, with five to seven major shows planned and twelve to fifteen designers per show.
Lanham Act cases built around fashion event names are a rising category of IP litigation, particularly as regional fashion weeks have multiplied and the organizers behind them have spent years building brand equity around those marks. Priority of use, geographic scope, and likelihood of consumer confusion will likely form the core arguments once the case advances past its opening procedural stage.
As of March 31, 2026, the docket shows only initial filing entries. No hearings have been scheduled and no substantive rulings have been issued.
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