Tag: Right of Publicity
Dua Lipa Sued Over Posting Photo of Herself on Instagram
Dua Lipa has been sued by Integral Images, Inc. in district court in California for posting a photo of herself on her Instagram feed. This is yet another in a string of copyright lawsuits arising out of celebrities (like Khloe Kardashian & Tom Brady) posting images of themselves on social media when they are not the copyright holders of...
Sacha Baron Cohen Sues Over Unauthorized Ad Campaign
Earlier this week, film and television actor Sacha Baron Cohen and his company, Please You Can Touch, sued Solar Therapeutics in district court in Massachusetts for the unauthorized use of his likeness, Borat character, and the character's catch-phrase in a billboard advertisement for a cannabis company. The complaint sets forth claims for a right of publicity violation...
Coca-Cola Wins Round II as California Appellate Court Reverses Massive Jury Award
The California Court of Appeal for the Fourth District reversed an almost $10 million jury award against Coca-Cola in Hansen v. Coca-Cola Company in a recent unpublished decision. The dispute arises out of the Hansen’s sodas and juice brand (now owned by Coca-Cola) and a trust composed of the real Hubert Hansen’s descendents who claim...
Win for Free Speech and Docudramas in New York
Last week a New York appellate court granted the defendant’s summary judgment motion in Porco v. Lifetime Entertainment Services, the long-running dispute over Lifetime’s ripped-from-the-headlines docudrama Romeo Killer: The Chris Porco Story, which first aired in 2013. This decision reverses the trial’s court’s alarming rejection of the defendant's summary judgment motion on the basis that...
Mixed Victory for Jackson Estate in Tax Court
On May 3rd, the U.S. Tax Court issued the long-awaited decision in the long-running litigation over the estate taxes owed by the Michael Jackson estate. In a sweeping 253-page opinion (with additional appendices) the Tax Court, clearly cognizant that this opinion will likely be read by many more people than the usual tax decision, quotes...
New York Governor Signs New Postmortem Right of Publicity Bill
On November 30th, 2020, the Governor of New York signed into law a new postmortem provision which for the first time will add a postmortem right to the state's law, lasting 40 years after death. This new law also addresses the unlawful dissemination and publication of "sexually explicit depictions," and adds a digital replica right...
The Third Circuit Upholds First Amendment Defense in Video Game Case
In a nonprecedential opinion the Third Circuit held that the First Amendment insulates the makers of the video game Gears of War from a right of publicity claim. The case, Hamilton v. Speight, involves a right of publicity claim brought by the plaintiff, Lenwood Hamilton, who alleged that his identity was used for one of...
50 Cent’s Right of Publicity Claim Preempted by Copyright Law
Earlier this week, the Second Circuit, in an opinion penned by Judge Pierre Leval, held that a right of publicity claim by rap artist Curtis James Jackson III, better known as 50 Cent, was preempted by federal copyright law. The claim was brought under Connecticut law and arose out of Jackson’s objection to the use...
New York Reintroduces Much Improved Postmortem Right of Publicity Bill
During its usual off-season, the New York legislature is revisiting its multi-year efforts to add new sections to its civil rights law and in particular to add a postmortem provision to state law. This latest version would add two sections to NY's Civil Rights Law, what it dubs a new “right of publicity” and a...
Pennsylvania District Court Holds Right of Publicity Claims Barred by Communications Decency Act Section 230
A federal district court in Pennsylvania granted Facebook, Imgur, and Reddit’s respective motions to dismiss claims that they had violated Karen Hepp’s common law and statutory rights of publicity under Pennsylvania law. The Court held her claims barred by the Communications Decency Act (“CDA”)'s Section 230, 47 U.S.C. § 230. The case arose when Ms....