Famous Chef ‘Salt Bae’ faces copyright infringement

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Famous Chef ‘Salt Bae’ faces copyright infringement

By Pallavi Paul

Brooklyn-based artist, William Hicks has filed a suit for copyright infringement in the District Court for Southern District of New York against famous Chef Nusret Gökçe popularly known as ‘Salt-bae’. He has alleged Salt-bae of illegally using his artwork depicting the Chef in the signature ‘salt-sprinkling pose’. Salt-bae had commissioned William and another artist in the year 2017, to create and install an original mural of the chef depicting his internet famous salt-sprinkling pose for a location of his restaurant chain in Miami. In the lawsuit, William has stated that Salt-bae has 

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By Pallavi Paul

willfully infringed his copyright by reproducing and publicly displaying two of his original artworks at several chain restaurant locations like New York, Dubai and Istanbul without his permission. Not only this, Salt-bae has even used the same image in logos, signage, uniforms, menus, merchandise, consumer products, online advertising, marketing and many other items as well without William’s authorization. William had sent a cease-and-desist notice to Salt-bae back in April 2020, but Salt-bae did not pay heeds to it and continued infringing his copyright by doubling their already widespread infringement.

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By Pallavi Paul

William seeks actual damages, disgorged profits and statutory damages in excess of $5million dollars (five million dollars), injunctive relief and other reliefs as the Court deems just and proper.

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