diff --git a/toonz/sources/toonz/xdtsio.cpp b/toonz/sources/toonz/xdtsio.cpp
index 2c6f20f..a3dbecf 100644
--- a/toonz/sources/toonz/xdtsio.cpp
+++ b/toonz/sources/toonz/xdtsio.cpp
@@ -463,6 +463,8 @@ bool XdtsIo::loadXdtsScene(ToonzScene *scene, const TFilePath &scenePath) {
 
   // obtain level names
   QStringList levelNames = xdtsData.getLevelNames();
+  // in case multiple columns have the same name
+  levelNames.removeDuplicates();
 
   scene->clear();