The Empire has struck out.
Britain's Supreme Court on Wednesday defeated a bid by George Lucas' company to stop a prop designer making and selling replicas of the iconic stormtrooper helmets from the Star Wars films. The court did, however, prevent him from selling them in the United States.
Andrew Ainsworth sculpted the white helmets worn by the sinister galactic warriors in the original Star Wars film in 1977, and now sells replicas over the internet. Lucasfilm Ltd. has been trying for years to stop him, in a battle that has climbed through the British courts.
Lucasfilm's lawyers argued that the stormtrooper suits are sculptures and therefore works of art covered by British copyright law. Two lower courts ruled in 2008 and 2009 that the costumes were props, not artworks - victories for Ainsworth.
The country's highest court on Wednesday upheld those decisions. The panel of five judges said "it was the Star Wars film that was the work of art that Mr. Lucas and his companies created. The helmet was utilitarian in the sense that it was an element in the process of production of the film."
