Mario Andretti right of publicity ruling
The Sixth Circuit has affirmed a district court ruling in Andretti v. Borla Performance Industries, Inc.,Download file, in which Mario Andretti was granted an injunction against unauthorized use of his name in advertising, but denied damages for failure to prove his case.
Andretti was a spokesperson for Car Sound, with an exclusive four-year deal paying $500,000 per year to endorse exhaust systems. Car Sound's competitor, Borla, ran an advertisement that used a quotation from Andretti where he praised a Borla product. Borla obtained permission from the publisher of the quotation, but not from Andretti.
The Court upheld the injunction prohibiting Borla from using Andretti's quotes or likeness or otherwise implying endorsement. However the Court held that Andretti failed to show evidence of damages. The existence of his endorsement contract was insufficient to show the contract was impaired, and possible damage to his reputation as a spokesman was too speculative.
