Jokes, memes, AI-generated images—even large companies have jumped on the Dolina bandwagon.
But here's a detail no one has mentioned yet: the name 'Larisa Dolina' is actually an officially registered trademark with Rospatent.
By law, you can claim compensation of up to 5,000,000 rubles for each trademark infringement. And from January 3, 2026, this limit will increase to 10,000,000 rubles. Do you know what could happen?
It seems absurd to sue for money over internet jokes. But what do you think of the apartment ruling itself?
I am an intellectual property lawyer. Trademarks, patents, and copyrights are my profession.
How many more apartments will Dolina be able to buy with the compensation money?
Let me show you what Dolina has registered with Rospatent, and using the best jokes as examples, we'll analyze the risks for everyone who has jumped on this topic.
But first, a few words about how trademarks work in general.
How trademarks work in Russia today
Most often, company and product names, slogans, logos, pseudonyms, and domain names are registered as trademarks with Rospatent.
Today, there are over 950,000 trademarks in Russia, with another 130,000-140,000 applications filed each year. Finding a cool, available name is not easy, but accidentally using someone else's is.
An important point: a trademark doesn't protect the name itself, but the use of that name for specific goods and services.
Registering a trademark is not just about 'patenting a word.' Registering a mark means obtaining a monopoly on the use of that name or logo in business.
Trademarks are not just made-up words like 'Yandex' or neutral ones like 'Magnit.' If a person or company uses a name in business, it is also registered as a trademark.
For example, I've registered the brand 'Dimochka' for sofas and the logos 'Sasha' and 'Zhenya' for a clothing store—and a bunch of other 'name' marks. This is usually done to protect one's name as a brand, get verification checkmarks on social media, and protect against scammers.
The name 'Larisa Dolina' is a trademark
As it turns out, the name 'Larisa Dolina' was registered with Rospatent a long time ago. Here is the data from the state register:
So, by law, you can't just use the name 'Larisa Dolina'—there are nuances.
How much money can be claimed for trademark infringement
The range of penalties for using someone else's trademark is such that it can sometimes lead to bankruptcy:
claiming compensation in favor of the rights holder—up to 5 million rubles, sometimes more (Clause 4, Art. 1515 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation);
fines payable to the state for violating advertising laws and unfair competition—here from 100,000 to 500,000, and then it's a matter of luck (Part 2, Art. 14.33, Part 1, Art. 14.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation);
confiscation of goods illegally bearing someone else's trademark (Clause 2, Art. 1515 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation);
blocks on social media and marketplaces;
sometimes liability up to criminal charges (up to six years, Art. 180 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).
Of course, courts don't always award the full 5,000,000 rubles for every infringement.
On average, in my experience with trademark disputes, the amounts awarded range from 300,000-500,000 to a million rubles. But disputes for the full five million also happen.
For example, I once told you about our 'What Meme Are You?' case. In that case, one entrepreneur created a board game called 'What Meme Are You?' and started selling it on marketplaces, while another entrepreneur saw this and made a very similar game called 'What's the Meme?'. In the end, we recovered the full 5,000,000 rubles from the infringer.
In another situation, one company demanded 5,000,000 rubles from a furniture store for using the sofa name 'Chester'. We had to fight it off—and barely managed.
In short, trademark disputes are not uncommon—Russian courts hear thousands of such cases every year. And the sums involved are substantial.
So what exactly is considered an infringement?
For a court to find a trademark infringement, three stars must align.
⭐️ The same or a very similar designation is used
If the mark says 'Larisa Dolina' and someone else also uses 'Larisa Dolina'—it's obvious. If the mark says 'Larisa Dolina' and someone writes just 'Dolina' in an ad—that could also be considered an infringement.
Courts award compensation not only when the exact same name is used. Cases where the names are too similar—so much so that an ordinary person might confuse them—are also considered infringements.
Like in our 'What Meme Are You?' and 'What's the Meme?' case—the names were different, but too similar, which is why compensation was awarded.
⭐️The designation is used for goods and services for which the trademark is registered
The use of a trademark is not just mentioning the brand, but specifically the sale or advertising of certain goods or services. Which ones depends on what exactly the mark is registered for.
The list of goods and services is chosen by the mark's owner and their lawyer—a patent attorney—when filing the application. Rospatent then decides for which goods and services the registration can be approved.
Dolina's trademark is registered for a huge list of goods and services:
And if you search further, you can find a second trademark belonging to Dolina:
So, it turns out that Dolina is an artist, but her trademark is also registered for cafes, alcohol, and even preparations for destroying vermin.
⭐️The mark's owner did not give permission for such actions
It's simple: by default, you are prohibited from using a trademark unless you have a written agreement with its owner—a license.
Records of such licenses are entered into the Rospatent register, and according to the register, Dolina has not granted such permissions to anyone.
In summary: a similar designation, the same goods/services, and no permission from the owner. If all these conditions are met, there is an infringement.
Can you and I joke about Dolina?
As you can see, trademark infringement is specifically the use of a trademark in business.
If a post is not from a company but from an ordinary person and contains no photos, you can joke as much as you want—trademarks have nothing to do with it.
When someone posts a joke like 'let's have Dolina sign the treaty with Ukraine and the US'—this is just mentioning a person, not using a trademark.
If someone makes a claim against you for such a post (and after court cases like these, it seems anything is possible), your response should be: the post contains no sales or advertising, so there is no question of trademark use whatsoever.
But if you are an entrepreneur, things suddenly get more complicated.
Companies are joking about Dolina on social media—are they doomed?
A bunch of companies, both famous and not-so-famous, have jumped on the Dolina joke bandwagon. Sushi delivery services, restaurants, travel agencies, realtors, you name it—almost everyone has touched on this sensitive topic.
And here's the nuance: trademark infringement is not just selling goods, but even simply using someone else's brand in advertising (sub-clause 4, clause 2, Art. 1484 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).
'Larisa Dolina' is a trademark.
The mark is registered for a bunch of goods and services, including cafes and restaurants.
Now, look at this Burger King post from that perspective:
From a legal standpoint, the situation looks like this: Burger King is using the 'Larisa Dolina' trademark in its advertising to attract customers' attention. Do you see where this is going?
This one, however, is debatable:
On the one hand, 'Mnogo Lososya' doesn't explicitly write 'Larisa Dolina.' In case of a dispute, they might try to argue that the set is not called 'Dólina' at all, but 'Dolína'.
But remember that infringement is not only the use of the exact same name or logo, but also one that is 'confusingly similar'—that is, too similar.
Whether it's 'similar' or 'not similar' is decided by the court in case of a dispute. And in this case, the court would most likely decide that the names 'Dolina' and 'Larisa Dolina' are too similar. Especially given the context of the message.
Of course, the lawyers for 'Mnogo Lososya' could try to pass it all off as just a joke, with no advertising involved.
But here's the nuance: the post was published on behalf of the company. The statutory purpose of any commercial company is to make a profit. Simply put, under our laws today, almost any company activity on social media is considered advertising.
'It's just a joke,' 'we don't sell such a product,' 'there's no price tag in the message,' 'we didn't offer it for sale'—all of this may be irrelevant. In case of a dispute, the court might rule: the company's own brand is mentioned—that's it, it's advertising.
And here's a brilliant example from Aviasales: the reference is clear, the joke is funny, and legally—it's airtight:
So, in summary—can companies joke about Dolina on their social media:
🔴 Posts mentioning the name 'Larisa Dolina'—very risky
🟡 Posts mentioning only the surname 'Dolina'—debatable, but also risky
🟢 Jokes that allude to the situation without mentioning the first or last name—go right ahead
The name part is clear, but what about photos and memes?
Names are protected by trademark rights. Photos and images are protected by copyright—and that's a whole different story.
The main difference is that while trademarks are only protected in business and in relation to specific goods and services, copyrights are protected everywhere.
So, it no longer matters who posted a photo of Dolina or in what context—an ordinary person or a company. If the post is not approved by the owner of the photo rights, it is legally an infringement.
It's just that no one really sues ordinary people, and if they do, the copyright compensation awarded is at the lower end—10,000-20,000-30,000 rubles.
But entrepreneurs and companies are sued for the full amount, because copyright infringement in business is considered a more serious offense by default—here they can claim 100,000, 200,000, and sometimes even more.
The rights to Dolina's photograph may not even belong to Dolina herself. They could belong to a separate special legal entity, and their authorized lawyers will go to court to claim compensation.
Using an AI-generated image instead of a real photograph does not absolve you of infringement either.
In case of a dispute, the court will reason as follows: one, it is a derivative work of a specific photograph; two, it is the use of a person's image without their consent. If the image is used on behalf of a company, compensation will be awarded with a very high probability, and it won't be small.
So, what's the bottom line:
Ordinary people can joke about Dolina as much as they want—it's not an infringement.
But you could get in trouble for photos of Dolina and even for a generated image—at the very least, a block.
Entrepreneurs and companies should avoid writing the words 'Larisa Dolina' or even just 'Dolina' on behalf of their business. Those who have already done so might get a visit.
Businesses should definitely not use photos of Dolina. Especially considering that from 2026, the amount of compensation for copyright and trademark infringement will be doubled.
Meanwhile, we continue to follow the appeal of the court's decision in the Dolina case. I hope the Supreme Court will overturn this decision and put an end to this whole mess.
Especially since it became known just yesterday that the Supreme Court has requested the Dolina case file for further review.
If you found this post useful and interesting, give it a plus, and I'll post more.
I answer all general questions in the comments.
If you need to ask something private for yourself or your company, for example, to have your name or logo checked against real databases, or to get help with trademark registration, a patent, or a court case—write me a private message on Telegram @bchlf
If you are generally interested in protecting your intellectual property rights— I have a small Telegram channel called 'Rights Holders' Club'.
I recently wrote and published a short guide on the channel called 'How to Lose Millions on Compensations and Fines'—no SMS or registration required. I compiled a table of typical mistakes that cost people money and described what, in my experience, should be done in advance to avoid getting into trouble.