Nike is Suing Edison Chen for $126 Million
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Nike’s legal department tends to draw just as many headlines as their releases, whether they’re chasing after BAPE for trade dress infringement or shutting down customizers like Shoe Surgeon. However, the brand rarely takes action against one of its former collaborators. But we never say never because it just happened.
Zak Kurtz from Sneaker Legal has reported that Nike just sued CLOT founder Edison Chen for $126 million.
The lawsuit, filed in the state of California, accuses Chen of breaching his contract with Nike, though at this time the full details of the filing are not available to view. CLOT/Chen’s contract with Nike has never been made public but the duo were long-standing partners before Edison made the switch to adidas in September 2023. The first CLOT x Nike project launched in 2006, and over the course of 17 years, the two released over thirty different sneakers.
Chen’s exit from Nike was a bit strange and abrupt, with the first release from CLOT’s adidas partnership taking place only a few months removed from the What The CLOT Dunk drop. At the time, and even up until this news broke, there were no signs that the duo’s relationship had soured.
CLOT has since become a steady partner for adidas, having already worked on nearly 20 different sneakers in just two years. Next up for CLOT x adidas is a project on the adidas AE 1 Low, which is reportedly the last release for Anthony Edwards’ hit signature sneaker before the release of the highly anticipated AE 2.
We’ll be monitoring this case closely and sharing details as soon as we have more information.
Sneakerhead from South Florida who turned his passion into a career. When not writing for Sole Retriever, I enjoy attending concerts and catching the latest movies. Email: nick@soleretriever.com
