Biting The Pearl's Style

In the wake of the Vigneron contretemps, I've already gotten a couple emails this morning referring to the Pearl Oyster/Ed's Lobster dustup. Rebecca Charles, Pearl's owner, is suing a former employee for opening a place that is too similar to hers. I am not a lawyer, and am not familiar with intellectual property law, but it is hard for me to see exactly how the color of the wainscoating is something in which a distinct proprietary right inheres. If the places are as similar as the article, which seems pretty firmly in the Pearl corner, asserts, it is lame, but I would argue lame rather than morally wrong. There is no attempt to deceive, as would be the operative concern if this were a realm where the idea of plagiarism applied. If Charles wins, it opens up a whole can of worms -- no more mullet for the singer in Quarterflash, no more bowl cuts for the Monkees. From here, it looks like a case of bitch stole my look, which I do not think is illegal. Yet.