Lexi Love® Trademark Defense
Paramount and World Of Wonder Sued in Federal “Lexi Love” Trademark Case
The litigation addresses the unauthorized integration and subsequent dilution of Scola’s twenty-year professional trademark within the global RuPaul’s Drag Race franchise.
Analysis of the Dispute
The legal proceedings were precipitated following Cody Barnes’ appearance as "Lexi Love" on RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 17. Barnes subsequently initiated a petition to cancel Scola’s and active established U.S. and international trademark registrations—rights Scola has maintained and utilized professionally for two decades.
Scola’s counterclaims assert that the media conglomerates failed to exercise necessary due diligence, resulting in the unauthorized commercial use of a protected mark across television production, global marketing campaigns, and merchandising.
This case represents a critical inflection point in the protection of intellectual property for independent creators within the evolving landscape of global media and reality television franchises.
Legal Reference Information:
Proceeding: Selena Scola (aka Lexi Love®) v. Cody Barnes, Paramount Skydance Corporation, and World of Wonder Productions, Inc.
Court: U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California Case Records Available via PacerMonitor: https://pacermonitor.com/case/61945796/Cody_Barnes_v_Scola
SAN FRANCISCO, CA — A significant development has emerged in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California regarding the long-standing LEXI LOVE® trademark. Selena Scola, an established SAG-AFTRA actor and the registered owner of the federal trademark, has filed formal counterclaims against Paramount Skydance, World of Wonder Productions, and Cody Barnes.
Paramount Global and World of Wonder are advancing a position designed to offset a lack of diligence in the face of pending injunctive relief.
In 2026, I am enforcing my trademark rights as a SAG-AFTRA actor against Paramount Global and World of Wonder.
Paramount Global and World of Wonder utilized the 20-year LEXI LOVE® trademark within a global franchise without authorization or licensing. Following my formal challenge in federal court, Paramount Global and World of Wonder initiated actions to invalidate the LEXI LOVE® trademark through the USPTO and under the Madrid Protocol, advancing allegations of fraud tied to the expansion of services into AI-driven categories.
Paramount Global and World of Wonder are advancing a position that attempts to redefine established trademark principles to account for a failure of diligence against an independent and established actor, in response to facing a preliminary injunction that would remove three shows from distribution due to trademark infringement.
Real Impact.
Drag Performer Seeks to Cancel 20-Year LEXI LOVE® Trademark
Selena Scola, a SAG-AFTRA actor and owner of the federally registered LEXI LOVE® trademark, in continuous commercial use for more than twenty years, has filed counterclaims in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California against Cody Barnes and added Paramount Skydance Corporation and World of Wonder Productions. The filing alleges unauthorized use of the LEXI LOVE® name in television productions and related promotions.
The dispute arose after drag performer Barnes appeared as “Lexi Love” on RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 17 and filed suit seeking cancellation of Scola’s U.S. and international LEXI LOVE® trademarks so Barnes could obtain rights to the mark for Barnes’ own professional use.
Federal court filing: Selena Scola, aka Lexi Love®, Counter-Claimant, vs. Cody Barnes, an individual; Paramount Skydance Corporation; and World of Wonder Productions, Inc., Counter-Defendants. https://www.pacermonitor.com/case/61945796/Cody_Barnes_v_Scola
Lexi Love® Trademark Defense:
Fiction vs. Facts
Topics: Clair Barnes, a contestant on RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 17 Untucked, has engaged in a calculated pattern of bad-faith deception—manipulating public sympathy and weaponizing misinformation to exploit her fanbase for financial gain while defaming Lexi Love®, a lawful trademark owner and verified SAG-AFTRA actor.
False Claim of Opportunistic Trademark Filing and Lapse
False Claim of Prior Rights to SAG-AFTRA Actor’s Name Lexi Love®
False Claim of Licensing Offer and Consideration
False Claim of No Industry Overlap and Misrepresentation of Professional Standing
False and Defamatory Misrepresentation of SAG-AFTRA Actor Lexi Love®’s Identity
Public Solicitation and Incitement of Infringement
Fraudulent Solicitation and False Representation of Trademark Ownership
Fiction vs. Facts clarifies misinformation and corrects false claims made by Clair Barnes, a contestant on RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 17 Untucked, and media outlets regarding the federally registered trademark of SAG-AFTRA actor Lexi Love®, in order to preserve the integrity, priority, and reputation of the Lexi Love® mark and brand.
Fiction: Lexi Love’s trademark lapsed for ten years and was re-filed opportunistically.
Fact: Use of the Lexi Love® mark remained continuous; administrative transitions between mark filings did not affect its legal protection domestically or internationally.
Quote: In a publicly available YouTube interview, Clair Barnes stated: “Again, I used to be a crackhead living under a bridge. I know nothing about any of this.”
Summary: Barnes continues to spread false and misleading information in interviews while admitting no understanding of trademark law. Reporters repeating and amplifying her claims have failed to conduct even a basic search of the USPTO database to verify her statements.
1.
2008 → 2015: Registration maintained under U.S. Reg. No. 3475773
• Filed: December 12, 2007
• Registered: July 29, 2008
• Cancelled: March 6, 2015 (Section 8 Declaration not filed)
• USPTO Record
2015 → 2022: Second registration remained active under U.S. Reg. No. 4843150
• Filed: February 6, 2015
• Registered: October 27, 2015
• Cancelled: May 13, 2022 (Section 8 Declaration not filed)
• USPTO Record
2022 → 2024: Continued in use while Application No. 97428288 was pending
• Filed: May 25, 2022
• Abandoned: June 22, 2023 (Administrative timing issue, not substantive refusal)
• USPTO Record
2024 → Present: Active registration under U.S. Reg. No. 7727806
• Filed: February 10, 2024
• Registered: March 18, 2025
• Status: LIVE / Principal Register
• USPTO Record
International Protection:
• WIPO International Registration No. 1 877 373
• Madrid Application No. A0162036
• Registered under the Madrid Protocol and extended to: European Union, United Kingdom, Australia, Mexico, and Canada
• WIPO Record
Fiction: Clair Barnes’s rights to Lexi Love® predate SAG-AFTRA actor Lexi Love’s rights and use.
Fact: Barnes has no federal, international, or common-law filings predating SAG-AFTRA actor Lexi Love’s 2004 record.
Quote: In a YouTube interview, Barnes acknowledges this fact, stating: “Um, there’s just someone else that used this intellectual property, um, as far back as like 2004. Um, they were doing other things as Lexi Love than what I am doing.”
Summary: Ownership and priority of the Lexi Love® mark were affirmed in World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Arbitration and Mediation Center Case No. D2009-0417, Lexi Love Entertainment Inc. v. Texas International Property Associates (May 19, 2009). The WIPO Panel held that Lexi Love was a distinctive and protectable mark in commercial use as early as August 16, 2004, supported by United States Registration No. 3475773. The decision ordered the transfer of the domain name lexilove.com to the complainant, confirming lawful ownership and priority rights under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP).
The WIPO ruling and corresponding federal registration establish nationwide and international priority of the Lexi Love® mark, preempting and overriding any later or localized claims to the name Lexi Love.
2.
Fiction: Clair Barnes claims to have offered consideration and a trademark license agreement to lawfully use the Lexi Love® trademark.
Fact: No offer of consideration, license grant, or contractual negotiation was ever made by Barnes or any affiliated entity. Lexi Love® received a reply from Team LoveBug acknowledging receipt of a cease-and-desist notice.
Quote: In a YouTube interview, Barnes falsely represents that she offered money and a licensing agreement, stating, “I offered like money. I offered a licensing. I offered everything.”
Summary: Publicly asserting the existence of a licensing offer or payment when none occurred constitutes false representation and may serve as evidence of willful infringement. The correspondence referenced below is what SAG-AFTRA actor Lexi Love® received in response to her cease-and-desist notice.
3.
“We acknowledge receipt of your cease-and-desist correspondence regarding the use of the name Lexi Love. Please be assured that we take your concerns seriously and are actively reviewing the matter on our side.
At this stage, we would like to understand your expectations more clearly. Specifically, are you seeking that Lexi adopt a variation of the name, or that she abandon the use of “Lexi Love” entirely? It is important that we have clarity from you before determining next steps, as we cannot proceed based on assumptions.
Our intent is not to create confusion or infringe upon your rights. We would prefer to resolve this matter amicably and professionally, and we are open to dialogue regarding potential solutions.
We look forward to your response and further clarification.
Sincerely,
Team LoveBug”
Fiction: Clair Barnes claims Lexi Love® “does a completely different type of business” unrelated to entertainment and refers to the SAG-AFTRA actor as “a small-time woman.”
Fact: Lexi Love® verified as a SAG-AFTRA performer on IMDb and operates within Class 41 (entertainment services) — the same class Barnes uses for drag performance, digital streaming, and live shows. The assertion of “no overlap” is factually and legally false under the likelihood of confusion standards.
Quote: In a YouTube interview, Barnes mischaracterized the nature of the mark and its commercial use, stating: "Like if you look at the IMDb, she's got a a whole score of things that she's she's done, but she doesn't do that anymore. She actually does Lexi Love um doing a completely different type of business that still has nothing to do with um what I do or or or cross referencing or cross confusing, which is the whole point of trademarks is to is to keep and differentiate things and businesses. There's a Dove chocolate and there's a Dove soap and they're not the same business. So I it just it's funny that this small time woman thinks that she should have right to this intellectual property over me."
Summary: Trademark law is governed by commercial overlap and the likelihood of consumer confusion rather than personal distinctions or performer preference. The Lexi Love® mark operates within the entertainment and media sectors, occupying identical channels of trade as Barnes’s performances. Publicly minimizing a verified SAG-AFTRA actor’s professional status constitutes misrepresentation of affiliation and defamation of trade reputation, evidencing willful misrepresentation.
4.
Fiction: Clair Barnes falsely claims that she is being forced to defend her right to use the name Lexi Love against “a porn star.”
Fact: Lexi Love® is a SAG-AFTRA actor since 2015, film producer, musician, and the registered owner of the federally and internationally protected Lexi Love® trademark (U.S. Reg. No. 7727806; WIPO Reg. No. 1877373), with continuous commercial use since 2004.
Quote: In a YouTube interview, Barnes publicly stated: "Yes, I at this point I'll still be going by Lexi Love. So please, Lexi Love it is. Please help me keep my name. I'm not kidding. Like I know this is stupid. I know. I know it's obnoxious, but you have to help a drag queen fight to keep her name from a porn star."
Summary: Barnes’s solicitation of public support to “keep” an infringing name after notice of federal registration constitutes willful infringement and bad-faith use in commerce. Furthermore, Barnes’s mischaracterization of the registrant as “a porn star,” while omitting her verified SAG-AFTRA status, constitutes defamation, false designation of origin, and tarnishment of trade reputation
5.
Fiction: Clair Barnes falsely represents that coordinating with another performer known as “Hotwife Lexi Love” to “take down” the SAG-AFTRA actor Lexi Love® is a permissible or justified action.
Fact: Barnes’s public appeal to “take down” the registrant SAG-AFTRA actor Lexi Love®, following receipt of formal notice of registration constitutes willful infringement, intentional inducement of infringement, contributory infringement bad-faith use in commerce, and tortious interference with contractual and business relations.
Quote: In a YouTube interview, Barnes publicly stated, “So, Hotwife Lexi Love, I’m reaching out to you now. Diva Fish, all of my heterosexual porn watchers out there, please reach out to your favorite porn hoe and let her know I’m looking for her. We’ve got someone to take down.”
Summary: Barnes undermines her own claims and exposes a contradictory and ill-informed understanding of trademark law by disparaging the registrant, SAG-AFTRA actor Lexi Love®, as “a porn star” while recruiting an adult performer to assist in a public campaign to “take down” the rightful trademark holder—language that conveys aggression, malice, and bad-faith intent.
6.
Fiction: Barnes falsely represents in a public GoFundMe campaign that she owns the trademark Lexi Love and is raising capital to “regain creative right of my full name Lexi Love and just stop this attack on my business!” Furthermore, Barnes falsely alleges that the SAG-AFTRA actor Lexi Love®’s enforcement of her registered mark constitutes a “money grab.”
Fact: Barnes’s claims of ownership, “creative right,” and “attack” are demonstrably false and intended to mislead the public for Barnes’s financial gain. Barnes holds no trademark registration, prior common-law rights, or verified use predating the registrant’s 2004 first use and 2008 federal registration of Lexi Love®. The SAG-AFTRA actor Lexi Love® derives no financial benefit from issuing cease-and-desist notices, which serve solely to prevent ongoing infringement and protect the integrity of a lawfully registered mark.
Quote: Barnes publicly stated GoFundMe page, “I am creating this funding platform to raise enough capital to hire a trademark defense lawyer to finally regain creative right of my full name Lexi Love and just stop this attack on my business! The “other” Lexi Love has created an attack on my business, my social media, and my presence as an entertainer at all. As a money grab they started to claim that they owned intellectual right over my name.”
Summary: Barnes’s actions evidence a calculated pattern of bad-faith deception, manipulating public sympathy while weaponizing misinformation to exploit her fanbase for financial gain. Barnes’s statements demonstrate a willful effort to profit from defaming a verified SAG-AFTRA actor and lawful trademark owner of Lexi Love® by making false claims of intellectual property ownership and framing lawful trademark enforcement as a personal “attack.”
Barnes fabricated a false narrative of persecution to finance her own misconduct, deceiving supporters and damaging the reputation and integrity of the rightful Lexi Love® trademark owner. Barnes actions constitute fraudulent misrepresentation, deceptive solicitation, and unfair competition, revealing reckless indifference to truth and law.
7.
Statement on Unauthorized Use of Lexi Love® Trademark — Trademark Protection, Not Disparagement
Lexi Love® is a federally registered trademark (USPTO Reg. No. 7727806) with first commercial use in 2004 and a prior WIPO domain dispute ruling affirming exclusive rights. The trademark is inseparably tied to the registrant’s government name, and media reporting that identifies a RuPaul’s Drag Race contestant under the same name has generated direct metadata associations linking third-party disclosures to the established Lexi Love® brand. Articles published in The Sun (link), MSN (link), Gay Times (link, link), Attitude (link), and Out (link) demonstrate the manner in which sensitive personal narratives listed in the post below have been indexed and circulated globally under the trademarked name. In the digital environment, metadata tagging, headline indexing, and automated knowledge graph systems amplify such associations, producing widespread brand confusion and reputational harm. Clarification of misidentification serves a legally necessary function: the prevention of trademark dilution and the correction of false attribution. Such clarification does not constitute disparagement of individuals or any marginalized group. Rather, it represents a lawful and essential act of intellectual property enforcement and reputational preservation, consistent with the principles of accuracy, consent, and non-misrepresentation in trademark law and media ethics.
Statement on Unauthorized Use of Lexi Love® Trademark
The clarification was issued solely as a matter of trademark protection and correction of misidentification, not as disparagement of individuals or any marginalized group.
“Clarification Regarding Misidentification & Trademark Infringement: The RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 17 contestant using the name “Lexi Love” on Paramount+ / MTV / World of Wonder platforms is not me. Use of my name by RuPaul’s Drag Race, contestant Barnes, and affiliated promotional platforms—including in performance, booking, DBA, and promotional materials—is unauthorized, nonconsensual, and constitutes trademark infringement.
For absolute clarity, I was not a contestant on RuPaul’s Drag Race. I am not transgender. I am not a person living with HIV. I am not a person who was formerly unhoused. I have never been trafficked in the sex market. I am not suffering from drug addiction, nor have I ever attended rehab for drug addiction. These personal disclosures were made publicly by the contestant while using my name in commerce without consent. Such infringement causes significant brand confusion, damages my personal and professional reputation, and creates false associations with experiences and conditions that do not apply to me or my brand. Lexi Love® is my federally registered trademark (USPTO Reg. No. 7727806) with first commercial use in 2004 and a prior WIPO domain dispute win confirming exclusive rights: https://wipo.int/amc/en/domains/decisions/html/2009/d2009-0417.html.
Barnes, RuPaul’s Drag Race, Paramount, Paramount Pictures, MTV, and World of Wonder, by taking my name and using it without consent, you are erasing my two-decade legacy and identity—actions that directly contradict the values of consent, authenticity, and respect that LGBTQ+ and marginalized communities champion for.
Immediately cease all use of the Lexi Love® name.”
