Yves Saint Laurent is kicking back at Christian Louboutin.
The famed French fashion house says the shoemaker didn’t invent his red-lacquered soles, and is trying to illegally monopolize the glamorous gimmick.
“Red outsoles are a commonly used ornamental design feature in footwear, dating as far back as the red shoes worn by King Louis XIV in the 1600s and the ruby red shoes that carried Dorothy home in ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ ” YSL says in court papers.
The luxury couturier — which Louboutin slapped with a $1 million-plus trademark-infringement suit in April — alleges that he fraudulently claimed “exclusive” use of red soles in his trademark application.
“As an industry leader who has devoted his entire professional life to women’s footwear, Mr. Louboutin either knew or should have known about some or all of the dozens of footwear models that rendered his sworn statement false,” the company claims.
YSL says it has been selling shoes with crimson soles since the 1970s, “long before” Louboutin got in on the act, attracting fans such as Madonna, Oprah Winfrey and Sarah Jessica Parker.
YSL also alleges that Louboutin’s suit is part of an “anti-competitive campaign” that included pressuring high-end retailers like Saks, Barneys, Bergdorf Goodman and Neiman Marcus to pull its shoes off their shelves.
Lawyers for Louboutin didn’t return requests for comment.