Shein asks a court to dismiss the Selena estate's merchandise lawsuit

Shein has asked a court to throw out the case Selena Quintanilla's family brought against it in March, filing a motion to dismiss on 17 September that argues the lawsuit has fundamental legal flaws.

The estate, led by Suzette Quintanilla-Arriaga and the family company Q Productions, alleges that Selena's trademarks and publicity rights were violated through Selena-themed items sold on the platform, including T-shirts carrying her face, her name and her cursive logo. The claims cover trademark infringement and publicity-rights violations, and the family is seeking damages and an order stopping the sales. A cease-and-desist letter was reportedly sent in August 2025.

Shein's answer is that it did not sell the items. The company says the merchandise went through Shein Marketplace, listed by independent third-party merchants, and that it removed the listings once it was alerted and opened an investigation. It also says it put a filter in place blocking searches for Selena and Selena Quintanilla, which TMZ first reported on 13 March and Remezcla checked the same day. Q Productions argues the letter was ignored and the products stayed up.

The legal question underneath is bigger than one estate. Shein's lawyers argue that an online marketplace cannot automatically be held directly liable for displaying third-party listings, processing transactions or fulfilling orders, which is the defence every marketplace of its size reaches for. A judge is expected to hear the motion in late October.

The Quintanilla family has a second courtroom problem at the same time. On 10 September Selena's brother A.B. Quintanilla III sued Suzette and two companies tied to the family business, accusing them of withholding profits and concealing financial information; he had signalled it on Instagram first. Suzette and their mother Marcella Quintanilla posted a statement denying wrongdoing and disputing the allegations.

The timing is awkward. A split in the family does not change the legal test the judge has to apply, but it does complicate the public story around an estate arguing it is the only body entitled to control a latin and pop icon's image. Estate fights of this kind grind on for years, as the long-running dispute between Aretha Franklin's sons shows, and trademark claims over merchandise are their own slow business, as Eminem's case over beauty products has demonstrated.