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Jury finds for Mattel in Bratz case

7/17/2008

RIVERSIDE, Calif. A California jury found in favor of Mattel in a case to determine the ownership of the $1 billion-plus Bratz doll franchise.

The main question was whether the creator of the dolls, Carter Bryant, made his original drawings while he was under contract as a Barbie designer at Mattel, or whether he created the Bratz dolls during an eight-month hiatus from the company in 1998.

Mattel's ownership was contested by MGA Entertainment, which lost the rights to all drawings and "sculpts" of the Bratz dolls. However, MGA can still contest in the damages phase of the trial, which begins July 23, that Mattel has no rights to the actual dolls because they are different from Bryant's original drawings and were made by MGA designers.

The jury also found that MGA ceo Isaac Larian had interfered with Mattel's contract with Bryant and that both he and MGA Entertainment were liable for "conversion," or industrial theft.

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