Suit alleges the Copyright Office imposes unreasonable multi‑year delays of more than four years and has issued internally inconsistent decisions that prevent designers from enforcing protection of their original sculptural footwear works.
BROOKLYN, NY, June 18, 2026 /24-7PressRelease/ — East Village Shoe Repair, LLC, designer Boris Zuborev, and co‑owner Mark M. Kratter have filed a federal lawsuit alleging that the U.S. Copyright Office violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) by imposing extreme, multi‑year delays and issuing internally contradictory decisions that block registration of their original sculptural footwear works.
According to the complaint, the Copyright Office acknowledged that the six footwear designs contain sculptural elements that are conceptually separable from the utilitarian aspects of a shoe, a key requirement under the Supreme Court’s Star Athletica test. Yet the Office simultaneously denied registration on the ground that those same sculptural elements supposedly lacked originality. The lawsuit calls this finding “logically incoherent,” noting that a feature the Office itself recognizes as a standalone work of art necessarily possesses the minimal creativity required under Feist.
The plaintiffs also allege that the Copyright Office’s Second Request for Reconsideration process has collapsed into a four‑to‑five‑year backlog, citing multiple recent cases in which applicants waited more than four years for a decision. Their own Second Request has been pending since October 2025 with no timeline for resolution. Under 17 U.S.C. § 411(a), creators cannot file infringement suits until registration is granted meaning the Office’s delay effectively locks designers out of federal court for years.
“This is not just a paperwork delay,” said designer Boris Zuborev, creator of the original 1990s sculptural footwear works at issue. “The Copyright Office’s inaction prevents us from enforcing our rights, licensing our designs, or protecting our creative legacy. No designer should have to wait half a decade for the government to decide whether their artwork is original.”
Co‑owner Mark M. Kratter added: “The Copyright Office made findings that contradict themselves on their face. They said our sculptural elements are separable works of art and then denied registration for lack of originality. That is the definition of arbitrary and capricious agency action.”
The lawsuit argues that the Office’s decisions violate multiple pillars of federal copyright law, including:
Star Athletica — by failing to complete the required two‑prong separability test
Feist — by applying an originality standard far higher than the law allows
Bleistein — by making prohibited aesthetic judgments
Mazer v. Stein — by disregarding long‑standing precedent protecting artistic features incorporated into useful articles
The plaintiffs seek a declaration that the Office’s refusal to register the works is unlawful, an order compelling registration, and relief for the Office’s unreasonable delay under 5 U.S.C. § 706(1).
The six sculptural footwear works: Moccasin Sneaker Hybrid; 70’s Lux Sole Sneaker; Sneaker with Zipper Closure with Faux Eyelets No Holes; Faux Fur Sneaker; Knee/Thigh High Sneaker‑Boot Hybrid with Faux Laces and Zipper Closure; and High Heel Feminized Work Boot were created in or around 1992 and include early sneaker‑moccasin hybrids, faux‑fur sneaker treatments, zipper‑axis sneaker designs with ornamental faux eyelets, and a feminized high‑heel work boot. Several of these concepts later appeared in commercial footwear released by major brands including Converse and Timberland, according to the plaintiffs’ allegations, underscoring both the originality of the works and their long‑overlooked influence on the modern footwear industry.
The plaintiffs further state that the Copyright Office’s delay has prevented them from pursuing additional enforcement actions involving later commercial footwear released by major brands whose products incorporated elements of the plaintiffs’ original 1990s works.
“This case is about fairness, consistency, and the right of designers to have their work evaluated under the law and not under shifting, contradictory standards,” Zuborev said.
The action was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.
About East Village Shoe Repair, LLC
East Village Shoe Repair, LLC is a New York–based footwear studio founded in 1992 by immigrant artists and craftsmen Boris Zuborev and Eugene Finkelberg. What began as a small repair shop on St. Mark’s Place evolved into a pioneering creative workshop that transformed mass‑produced sneakers into authored, sculptural works of art. As documented in the company’s historical narrative, the founders “reimagined footwear as a vehicle for cultural storytelling,” creating knee‑high and thigh‑high sneaker‑boot hybrids, moccasin‑sneaker fusions, faux‑fur sneakers, feminized work boots, and other original forms that reshaped the visual vocabulary of contemporary footwear.
Their work has been worn by artists, performers, and cultural figures across New York’s East Village and Club Kid scenes, and later by global celebrities. The company’s designs have been featured in major media outlets, including Vogue, which highlighted EVSR’s collaboration on surreal, sculptural footwear for Fashion Week (“the room seemed to shrink to dollhouse proportions” as models walked in EVSR’s custom platforms). Their creations have also appeared on FOX5, the New York Post, and across social media, including a viral video featuring Boris Zuborev that reached 17 million views, demonstrating the studio’s cultural impact and broad public recognition.
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