I have always wondered this in the past. I see tons of new tshirt shops being opened through places like cafepress or printfection that have tshirts which are questionable (atleast in my opinion) when faced with legal/copyright issues. Is there something that I am missing? I mean, I constantly see logo's being copied or movie characters or tv (anime) characters being used on t-shirts. Are they bound to get in any trouble in time? ie: I noticed a cartoon t-shirt shop on cafepress, each of the designs were digitally drawn but they were free-handed from the actual show? The site looks like it has been around for a bit.. I take it the same thing goes for anime? Any ideas on the laws/legal issues for these types of shops?
If an image is being used without permission, it's copyright infringement, and yes, it's illegal, at least here in the US. Many sites get taken down by their hosts (or T-shirts get removed from Cafe Press), and many others spring up to replace them. The copyright holders simply can't spot every infringer out there, so many get away with it. The more popular your site is, the more likely they will find you and get you shut down, so it's always a risk. (And yes, you could be liable for damages if they choose to take you to court).