Seattle Trademark Lawyer

The calendar plaintiffs say violates Marilyn Monroe’s publicity rights 

On Nov. 3, CMG Brands, LLC, and Marilyn Monroe, LLC, filed suit in King County Superior Court against publisher Moseley Road, Inc., and bookseller Borders Group, Inc. Plaintiffs claim to control Marilyn Monroe’s publicity rights. They allege defendants violated Marilyn Monroe’s right of publicity by publishing a calendar “bearing the name, trademark, and image of Marilyn Monroe” (depicted above) without their permission.

Defendants have not yet filed an answer.

Does this case signal that last year’s amendments to Washington’s right of publicity statute will turn our state into a hotbed for rights of publicity litigation? (See STL’s April 2008 post raising that possibility here.)  

The case cite is CMG Brands, LLC v. Moseley Road, Inc., No. 09-2-40301-SEA.