Tag: California
Professors File Brief Supporting Review of O’Bannon and Fixing Right of Publicity Mess
Last week I filed an amicus brief co-authored by Eugene Volokh and signed on to by 28 Constitutional Law and Intellectual Property Law professors supporting the petition for certiorari in O'Bannon, and in particular calling for guidance on the conflict between the First Amendment and the right of publicity. As I have written, O'Bannon v....
NCAA Petitions Supreme Court to Protect Uses of Athletes’ Names & Likenesses
Last week, the NCAA filed a petition for certiorari with the Supreme Court in O'Bannon v. NCAA. The bulk of the petition seeks to overrule the Ninth Circuit's decision that the NCAA rules requiring amateurism violate the Sherman Act and antitrust law. Part of the petition also challenges the Ninth Circuit's "flawed intepretation of the...
Supreme Court Denies Review of Davis v. Electronic Arts
This morning the Supreme Court denied certiorari in Davis v. Electronic Arts, Inc. This case from the Ninth Circuit rejected a First Amendment defense to right of publicity claims when the videogame Madden NFL depicted professional football players without their permission. I and many other intellectual property and constitutional law scholars had called on the...
Ninth Circuit Tosses Hurt Locker Case
Today the Ninth Circuit finally decided Sarver v. Chartier. The court affirmed the district court’s holding that the alleged use of Sergeant Jeffrey Sarver’s identity in the Academy-Award winning film The Hurt Locker is protected by the First Amendment. The ultimate holding that the use of a real person’s identity in an expressive work, like...
PGA Can Use Caddies as “Human Billboards”
Earlier this week, a federal district court dismissed a right of publicity claim by golf caddies against the PGA. The caddies objected to being forced to wear bibs that advertise various tournaments, golfers, and third-party corporations. The complaint was filed in September 2015 as part of a move to obtain better treatment of caddies on...
Darlene Love Sues Google for Using Her Voice
Darlene Love, an “icon of pop music’s golden age,” sued Google today for using her voice in advertising for mobile phones. Love is ranked 84 on Rolling Stone’s 100 Greatest Singers of all-time list, and is best known for He’s A Rebel, Alone on Christmas, and Christmas (Baby Please Come Home). She is also known...
Child Star Chachi’s Lawsuit Against her Mother is Dismissed
Olivia “Chachi” Gonzales, 19, is best known for her appearance and victory on MTV’s “America’s Best Dance Crew” in 2011. Chachi designed her own dance apparel and started selling “Chachimomma” pants similar to ones that she made popular by wearing them on the TV show. While Chachi was a minor, Chachi’s mother, Guadalope Gonzales, allegedly...
The Ninth Circuit Resurrects Sarver
On Christmas Eve, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals resubmitted Sarver v. Chartier for consideration. I posted earlier about this long-lingering right of publicity lawsuit arising out of the Academy-Award winning film The Hurt Locker. If the Supreme Court grants certiorari in Davis v. Electronic Arts—a case being discussed in conference later this week—look for...
Players Associations File Brief Supporting Reversal in Maloney
Earlier this week the NFL, MLB, NHL and MLS players associations filed an amicus brief supporting the NCAA student-athletes' appeal from a decision that held that their right of publicity claims were preempted by copyright law. The student-athletes objected to the sale of photographs that were licensed by the NCAA and that included images of...
Sarver Tells Ninth Circuit – Hey, Don’t Forget About Me!
In a letter filed this week in the Ninth Circuit, Sarver’s attorney reminds the Ninth Circuit that this case, which was argued on May 9, 2013, still has not been decided by the Court of Appeals. Sarver v. The Hurt Locker, LLC, involves a right of publicity claim (among other claims) for the alleged use...