Tag: First Amendment
More Musicians Object to Uses of their Music in Political Campaigns
Today, Rude Music filed a complaint in a federal district court in Illinois for the use of the song “Eye of the Tiger” by Presidential candidate Mike Huckabee. The song by the band Survivor was the theme song in the movie Rocky III which topped the charts at the time. Huckabee played the song at...
Constitutional Law and Intellectual Property Law Professors Call on Supreme Court to Review Davis
Professor Eugene Volokh (UCLA) and I filed a brief today in support of granting certiorari in Davis v. Electronic Arts. The brief was signed on to by many leading constitutional law and IP law scholars. We call on the Supreme Court to address the disarray among lower courts about how to analyze the First Amendment...
Another Biopic lawsuit – This Time Straight Outta Compton
With success often comes lawsuits and the movie Straight Outta Compton is no exception. On Friday, the music manager Jerry Heller sued NBC Universal and others involved with the film claiming that the character in the film played by actor Paul Giamatti misappropriates his identity by using his name and likeness. The complaint also alleges...
NFL Players Sue FanDuel for its Fantasy Football Game
Pierre Garcon and other NFL Players filed suit today in federal district court in Maryland claiming that their names and likenesses were misapproriated in FanDuel's fantasy football game. The complaint includes both right of publicity and false endorsement claims. No question that here is another looming First Amendment collision with the right of publicity. The...
Singer-Songwriter Sues for Unwitting Product Placement Arising out of Interview
Nafeesha Madyun, aka Esnavi has sued for right of publicity violations under New York Civil Rights Law Sections 50 & 51 for the allegedly unwitting product placement of a Hyundai in her consenusal interview when that interview was repurposed in an ad campaign by the automaker. The case raises some interesting questions about the legitimacy...
Hasbro Contends that Same-Named Hamster Does Not Evoke Newscaster’s Identity
Hasbro filed a motion Monday to dismiss newscaster Harris Faulkner's right of publicity claim against the toy maker for giving a stuffed hamster toy the same name as her. The defendant contends that because the hamster toy looks nothing like the newscaster and the use of her name alone does not evoke Ms. Faulkner's identity,...
Bride and Groom Sue Wedding Photographer
A married couple sued their wedding photographer, not for bad photos, but for violating their rights of publicity by using their wedding photos in promotional brochures. The couple explicitly opted out of allowing the use of their photographs other than for their own personal use. The couple retained the copyright in their wedding photographs and...
8th Circuit Appears Divided in Dryer v. NFL Oral Arguments
The oral arguments from last Thursday’s hearing before the 8th Circuit in Dryer highlight a host of flashpoints in right of publicity law. The arguments focused on whether the use of historical film clips constituted commercial speech. The plaintiffs’ attorney claimed that the use by the NFL was clearly commercial speech and therefore not entitled...
Student-Athletes File Appeal in Marshall v. ESPN
The student-athlete plaintiffs in Marshall have filed their opening brief in their appeal to the Sixth Circuit. The Tennessee district court had earlier rejected the claim that television broadcasts of collegiate games violated the players’ rights of publicity under Tennessee law. The brief contends that the district court erred by excluding the sports broadcasts from...
Beyonce, Pharrell, Rihanna, Jay-Z, and Kanye West Sue Over Use of their Images and Names on Merchandise
These megastars sued Eleven LLC for using their names and images in a variety of merchandise, including t-shirts, hats, and cell phone covers. Some of the images evoked Hitler and some of the items used lyrics from the artists’ songs. The plaintiffs’ complaint includes claims for violations of New York’s Civil Rights Laws § 50...