ABOUT US

About FLB

Independent insight at the intersection of fashion, law and business.

Fashion, Law & Business (FLB) is an independent platform dedicated to helping people better understand the relationship between fashion, law, business and culture. Founded in 2013 during AHRC-funded doctoral research into intellectual property in the fashion industry, FLB was established to bridge academic insight and industry practice. From the outset, its purpose has been to help people understand how legal, commercial and cultural developments shape the fashion industry. Today, that mission continues through independent analysis, executive education, industry engagement and opportunities for professional learning, career development and connection.

FLB does not simply report the industry. It interprets it.

Through legal analysis, commercial insight and cultural context, FLB examines the developments that matter—not simply for what happened, but for what they reveal about how the fashion industry works, the direction in which it is evolving, and what those changes mean for the people and businesses shaping it.

Headquartered at Somerset House Exchange in London, FLB is part of one of the UK's leading creative communities. This unique position brings the platform into close proximity with designers, founders, creative businesses and cultural organisations, while maintaining strong foundations in academic research and legal scholarship. It enables FLB to bring together research, professional practice and independent editorial analysis in a way that few platforms can.

FLB serves designers, founders, lawyers, students, academics, in-house counsel, brand leaders and creative business professionals. Whether you are beginning your career, growing a business, advising clients or leading change within the industry, FLB exists to provide independent perspective, create opportunities for learning and professional development, and help people make better-informed decisions within an increasingly interconnected industry.

Fashion Law Masterclass Series

Since 2015, the Fashion Law Masterclass Series has brought together leading in-house counsel, designers and industry professionals to examine the legal and commercial realities of building fashion businesses. The inaugural founding FLB masterclass conference welcomed more than 100 attendees, and the series has continued to attract participants from across the UK and internationally, including Dubai, Germany, France and Spain.

Past speakers have included legal counsel and senior professionals from Chanel, LVMH, Richemont, Burberry, Mulberry, Manolo Blahnik and Condé Nast. The programme has also been delivered in collaboration with the British Fashion Council in support of its NEWGEN designers and with Condé Nast College of Fashion & Design.

The Fashion Law Masterclass Series returns this Fall 2026.

About the Founder

Tania Phipps-Rufus

Founder & Editor-in-Chief

Tania Phipps-Rufus founded Fashion, Law & Business in 2013 alongside her AHRC-funded doctoral research into intellectual property in the fashion industry. An academic, researcher and commentator, her work explores the relationship between fashion, law, business and culture, with a particular focus on how legal and commercial frameworks influence creativity, innovation and the future direction of the fashion industry. She is Senior Lecturer and Course Leader in Fashion Culture and Business at the University of East London and Guest Lecturer in Intellectual Property and Trade Marks on the MA Luxury Brand Management at Goldsmiths, University of London. She has previously taught at the University of Hertfordshire, Istituto Marangoni and Coventry University London and is Co-Convenor of the Society of Legal Scholars' Open Subject Section.

Her research has been published internationally and continues to inform both academic scholarship and industry practice. She is a contributing author to The Oxford Handbook of Fashion Law (Oxford University Press), Series Co-Editor of Law, Creativity and Innovation (Bristol University Press), and has been commissioned to develop two further books with Routledge. Drawing on her doctoral research, she has also submitted formal evidence to the UK Intellectual Property Office's consultation on the future of the UK designs framework. Alongside her academic work, Tania has delivered invited lectures at Harvard Law School, the University of Oxford, the Victoria and Albert Museum, Central Saint Martins, London College of Fashion, King's College London, the University of Glasgow, the University of Oslo, the University of Antwerp (in collaboration with MoMu Fashion Museum and the Royal Academy of Fine Arts), and the Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University, New York.

Her work has been featured by BBC Radio 4, The Guardian and The Huffington Post, cited in international academic journals including the Columbia Human Rights Law Review and the WIPO Journal, and recognised by organisations including Canvas8 and 1Granary, where she has been interviewed on multiple occasions about creativity, attribution and intellectual property in fashion.

For media enquiries, speaking engagements or collaborations, please contact tania@fashionlawbusiness.com