Re: Advertising violations

On Sat, Mar 13, 1999, Carol Cricow <carol[_at_]yujean.com> wrote:
>
> On Fri, 12 Mar 1999, Vance Koven <vrkoven[_at_]world.std.com> wrote:
> >
> > I'm curious about the term of publicity rights. I had thought rights
> > of privacy and publicity were personal rights, and as such would
> > normally expire with the person to whom they attach. Obviously, this
> > is incorrect; what's the black-letter rule on this? Are they
> > perpetual?
>
> The Elvis Presley Estate practically invented the tort of right of
> publicity - all after Elvis's death. Death is not hinderance to
> this tort. I don't know how perpetual they are but the Elvis people
> (as well as the 3 Stooges people, the Marilyn Monroe people etc. etc.)
> are still going strong.

This is true in only some states. There are numerous jurisdictions in which the right of publicity is not descendable, and others in which it is descendable only if it was exploited by the decedent during his own lifetime. Obviously, however, Tennessee and California are not among those jurisdictions, but are rather the two states in which rights of publicity are most broadly protected. The rights of the Three Stooges are protected under California statutory law, and are controlled by Comedy III Productions, Inc.

Bob Cumbow
cumbr[_at_]perkinscoie.com
206-583-8566 Received on Mon Mar 15 1999 - 17:42:44 GMT