If you are like me, you may have a vague recollection of a strange case filed some eight years ago in which Nestlé was accused of misappropriating the likeness of a former model to use on the labels of everyone’s favorite, Taster’s Choice Coffee. Sounds like much ado about nothing at first
Tags:coffee·Copyright·misappropriation of likeness·publicity
Finally, today I pass a kiosk that has a picture of movie star Megan Fox in lingerie, advertising something or other, and prominently displayed on her right forearm is her famous tattoo of Marilyn Monroe. Believe it or not, one of my first thoughts was “I wonder if Marilyn’s estate has publicity rights in the tattoo on her arm?”
I am a commercial litigator and intellectual property lawyer at Callahan & Blaine in Orange County. Although my practice encompasses a wide variety of business disputes, I have a particular fondness for, and am prone to wax philosophical on, the subjects of copyright and trademark infringement in music, literature, art, and film.
