Gibson C&D on Guitar Trademark

By Wei Wei Jeang

Gibson, Inc., famous for its electric guitars, has sent Trump Guitars a cease & desist letter notifying it of trademark infringment.

Trump Guitars has been promoting and selling $11,000+ electric guitars endorsed by Trump.

Gibson told Guitar World, which first reported the story, it took action because the design of the instruments being sold as Trump Guitars “infringes upon Gibson’s exclusive trademarks, particularly the iconic Les Paul body shape.”

A search of Gibson's trademark filings yielded Registration No. 1782606, which depicts an outline of the iconic Les Paul guitar body (left).

A look at Gibson's trademark portfolio gives the impression that Gibson has invested significant resources to protect its valuable IP. Gibson's trademark portfolio includes registrations of various guitar body shapes, brand names, logo designs, as well as shapes of other guitar components. Its current trademark portfolio includes 130 live registrations.

Wei Wei Jeang is recognized by her peers in the 31ˢᵗ edition of The Best Lawyers in America®  for exceptional work in Patent Law and Trademark Law for 2025.