Earlier today, Gibson sent Trump Guitars, President-elect Donald Trump's newest business partnership with 16 Creative, a cease and desist letter for trademark infringement, according to Guitar World. The guitar company alleged that the body of the electric guitars bear a striking resemblance to the Les Paul model. "We can confirm a cease and desist has been issued against 16 Creative as the design infringes upon Gibson’s exclusive trademarks, particularly the iconic Les Paul body shape," the company told Guitar World.

Trump Guitars is not actually owned by President Trump, but it is the only guitar company endorsed by Donald Trump. A "veteran-owned" marketing agency 16 Creative developed and designed the guitars "with the help of a master luthier," according to the merchandise's website. The guitars' manufacturers are kept vague, as the website states, "These guitars have been manufactured by multiple providers and include parts/features that are both domestic and international."

Trump first announced his endorsement of the Trump Guitars to his followers on Truth Social on November 20th. He posted a photo of himself holding a '45' electric guitar, captioning it, "Coming Soon! The Limited Edition “45” Guitar. Only 1,300 of each Acoustic and Electric Guitars MADE — Some personally signed!"

Certainly, much of the design caters to the Trump-ian aesthetic: the giant "MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN" emblazoned on the neck (or "Donald J. Trump" in some models), as well as the painted bald eagle over the American flag feels tailor-made to appeal to his branding. However, the electric guitar's body allegedly lifts much of its body's design off the iconic Gibson Les Paul guitar—a solid, mahogany body topped with maple cut in an organic, round shape. While the electric Trump Guitars don't contain maple, they do conform to the mahogany solid body design, according to the guitar's specifications. The shape of the guitar also allegedly imitates the Les Paul's organic shape, with one round hump on one side of the neck, and one small hook on the other. Gibson claimed the resemblance in body shape infringes upon the guitar company's exclusive trademark rights.

Gibson has a long history of trying to protect the Les Paul design from competitors. In the 1980s, Heritage Guitar Inc. (a company that branched out of Gibson when the latter moved their base to Nashville) manufactured instruments with a similar design, only to be met with a lawsuit threat from their former co-workers. Heritage then legally disputed Gibson's trademark claim on an arguably "generic" shape. (The "APP" guitar, designed by O.W. Appleton ten years before the Les Paul guitar, is a common example.) The two reached a settlement agreement in 1991, allowing Gibson to keep the trademark over the body shape so long as Heritage could keep manufacturing the H-535, H-575, and the Eagle Classic according to Digital Music News. The peace ultimately wouldn't last long, as in 2015, Gibson sent cease and desist letters to Heritage again for allegedly stealing the Les Paul shape, and they only recently settled more "phantom 1991 agreement breach" disputes in 2023, according to Digital Music News. Heritage still sells the H-535, H-575, and the Eagle Classic. Gibson also led a series of other lawsuits that stopped companies from manufacturing certain guitar models altogether in order to protect the identity of the Les Paul, according to Forbes.

It is unclear if Trump Guitars will respect Gibson's official cease and desist. Many of the guitars are sold out already, and the company is still accepting pre-orders for the upcoming "Presidential" series ($1,500), which also appears to borrow the Les Paul design. The Trump Guitars website has a disclaimer on the "Presidential" electric model's purchasing menu that reads, "The images shown are for illustration purposes only and may not be an exact representation of the product."