Nazia Saeed
- Dolce & Gabbana USA dismissed from NFT class-action lawsuit by a U.S. federal court
- Plaintiffs alleged over $25 million in unfulfilled promises tied to DGFamily NFTs
- Judge ruled plaintiffs failed to show U.S. subsidiary acted as alter ego of Italian parent
A federal judge in New York has dismissed Dolce & Gabbana USA Inc. from a class-action lawsuit involving an NFT project developed by its Italian parent company, casting doubt on the future of the case.
In an order issued on Friday, Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald sided with the U.S. subsidiary, ruling that it was not an “alter ego” of the Italy-based Dolce & Gabbana SRL and therefore could not be held liable for the NFT initiative.
The lawsuit, filed by a group of NFT buyers in May 2024 and updated in September, accused Dolce & Gabbana and its U.S. unit of being “effectively the same company” and abandoning the DGFamily NFT project launched in 2022, while retaining over $25 million from its sales.
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Complaint alleges broken promises in DGFamily launch
The class-action complaint claimed Dolce & Gabbana and Dubai-based NFT platform UNXD Inc. collaborated on DGFamily a project that allegedly promised “high value” benefits to NFT buyers, including digital wearables for Decentraland, physical clothing, and invitations to live events.
Buyers were promised perks delivered quarterly over two years, but the plaintiffs alleged that Dolce & Gabbana “failed to provide the complete set of benefits they promised” and kept the funds generated through NFT sales.
Also named as defendants were UNXD Inc. and Bluebear Italia SRL, the creator of the “inBetweeners” NFT collection. However, the court noted that these entities were never served with the complaint.
D&G USA argued it had no NFT involvement
Dolce & Gabbana USA moved to dismiss the case in January, arguing it had no involvement in the NFT project and was organizationally distinct from its Italian parent.
D&G USA has not entered into any joint venture with UNXD, or any other entity, to sell, advertise, or promote any NFTs.
The motion asserted that the plaintiffs had failed to establish a legal link between the U.S. and Italian companies and acknowledged that the DGFamily initiative originated entirely from Dolce & Gabbana SRL in Italy.
No sufficient evidence linking U.S. unit
Judge Buchwald found the complaint “plainly insufficient” to support the plaintiffs’ claims against D&G USA, noting that the lawsuit referred to both the U.S. and Italian entities collectively as “Dolce & Gabbana” and attributed misconduct without distinction.
While the amended filing cited shared executives and office space, including a common CEO and marketing personnel, it failed to offer specific examples of how those individuals were involved in the NFT project.
The Court finds that plaintiff has not adequately alleged that D&G S.R.L. completely dominated D&G USA even if D&G S.R.L. allegedly shared some employees and office space with D&G USA.
With the only U.S.-based defendant now dismissed, the lawsuit’s viability remains in question, especially as the other named entities have not yet formally responded in court.
