Kim Kardashian is facing a new lawsuit after being accused of making false claims about some of the furniture displayed in her SKKN by Kim office.
“These Donald Judd desks are absolutely amazing,” Kardashian, 43, said during a tour of the 2022 office, referring to the late minimalist artist’s work. The businesswoman went on to note that the desks “blend perfectly with the chairs” in her monochrome office. (The video has been removed from Kardashian’s YouTube channel.)
However, according to the non-profit organization representing Judd’s estate, the late artist did not design the above tables. The organization is suing Kardashian for making false statements in a lawsuit filed by Us Weekly on Thursday, March 28. ( We ‘ve reached out to Kardashian’s team for comment. )
“Consumers may believe that the Judd Foundation and the Donald Judd brand are connected or affiliated with, or are sponsored or otherwise endorsed by, Ms. Kardashian,” the court documents said. “The Judd Organization specifically prohibits customers from using Donald Judd purchased furniture for marketing and promotional purposes.”
@kimkardashian Hello guys! Join me for an exclusive tour inside my @skkn headquarters. You’ve been requesting this video for a while now and I’m so excited to finally be able to share with you where the team and I work. Watch the full video on my YouTube channel now.
The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and also names Clements Design, who helped manage the office space and allegedly created the dining set that appears to imitate the design. by Judd. Clements Design is being accused of trademark and copyright infringement.
Discussions between Kardashian and Judd’s foundation began in 2022, days after the initial office tour was uploaded to YouTube. The Judd Foundation claims that they were in contact with Kardashian at that time.
A spokesperson for Kardashian reportedly told the organization they were “deeply sorry for any inconvenience” and offered to “update the video caption with a retraction.” However, the Judd Foundation wanted the video removed with Kardashian making a public statement. The dispute between the two parties was then brought to court.
Judd’s table – priced at $90,000 – has only had three authentic copies sold in the past 15 years.
“This issue was brought to our attention more than a year ago,” Clements Design said in a statement to Us on Thursday. “We contacted the Judd Foundation’s attorneys and clearly explained to them that there were clear fundamental differences between the furniture in Kim’s office and the furniture at the Judd Foundation.”
The statement continued: “The Judd Foundation’s previous counsel acknowledged these discrepancies and since then, we have not heard from them in over a year and are now blindsided by a lawsuit. At that time, efforts were made to resolve the matter amicably and the Judd Organization was unwilling to settle on reasonable terms. These claims are completely without merit.”
A report from The New York Times on Wednesday, March 27, shared a separate statement from attorney John Ulin written for the Judd Foundation.
“It is simply not true that Clements Design commissioned fake Donald Judd desks,” it said. “They are different tables with different designs.”
The statement continued: “The Judd Foundation’s previous counsel acknowledged these discrepancies and we have not heard from them since in over a year.”
While Kardashian has yet to comment, the Judd Foundation has reportedly received an invoice from Clements Designs that describes the furniture in question as being produced “in the style of Donald Judd.” A photo of Judd’s original dining set is said to have been included.
“It’s lower quality than Donald Judd’s furniture,” Judd Foundation attorney Megan Bannigan told The NYT . “We don’t want to be confused with Kim Kardashian. We respect what she does but we don’t want to get involved in this.”