Nike Inc. has 30 days to decide.
On March 31, U.S. District Court Judge Arun Subramanian in a Manhattan federal court overturned a jury verdict in favor of Nike in a lawsuit that Swoosh filed against Lululemon over the sneaker brand’s Flyknit patent claims.
The lawsuit, initially filed in January 2023, claimed that the athleisure brand’s sneakers — Chargefeel Mid, Chargefeel Low, Blissfeel and Strongfeel — infringed on Nike’s utility patents related to its Flyknit technology in connection with how they are manufactured and including their knitted textile and structural elements. Lululemon filed petitions with the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) to challenge the validity of Nike’s patents. Judge Subramanian declined to stay the district court lawsuit pending the PTAB review.
A jury verdict in March 2025 found in favor of Nike on one of its two patent infringement claims and rejected the remaining claim. Damages were awarded as a fine in the amount of $355,450 in favor of Nike. Judge Subramanian’s ruling last week that Nike’s patent claims as a matter of law were invalid on the ground of obviousness voids the jury verdict and the fine. Obviousness is a legal standard used to determine patentability of an invention. A patent can be voided or denied if the invention is considered the next logical step — or routine improvement or combination of elements — following a series of technologies.
Nike has the option to appeal, but it must file the paperwork by the end of April. A spokesperson for Nike did not respond to a request for comment by press time.
There is also a separate lawsuit filed in January 2023 that remains pending between Nike and Lululemon, also in a Manhattan federal court. The suit alleges patent infringement by Lululemon’s Mirror Home Gym, an at-home digital fitness device and its related apps.
Lululemon debuted its women’s line of shoes in March 2022 with the Blissfeel running shoe, followed by the Chargefeel versatile training shoe, the Strongfeel training shoe and the Restfeel slide for recovery.
Then CEO Calvin McDonald said the demand for the new products were in excess of supply and “far exceeded” the company’s expectations. The athleisure brand followed in February 2024 with its men’s shoe line that included the debut of a casual lifestyle sneaker called Cityverse, while adding two running models that spring, the Beyondfeel and Beyondfeel Trail.
Nike has been active in litigation over its Flyknit technology. It sued Skechers back in 2016 over the technology, although that case was later settled in 2022. Nike also sued Puma in 2018, with the parties settling in 2020. And it sued Adidas in 2021, with the parties settling in 2022. The sportswear and athletic shoe brand in 2023 sued Skechers again and New Balance in separate lawsuits filed in federal district courts in California and Massachusetts, respectively.
