Scott Douglass

Bette Midler. Vanna White. Marylin Monroe. Each of these women has undoubtedly shaped pop culture in some meaningful way. Perhaps what is lesser known is that litigation surrounding each of these women has shaped the legal world’s understanding of an individual’s right to publicity. Many states still do not formally recognize a right to publicity, while other states that do recognize such a right are not uniform. Some of these states recognize the right by statute, others by common law. Some states allow for posthumous rights to publicity, while others terminate the right at death. And some states only accord rights of protection to certain characteristics (e.g., name and image), while other states extend rights of protection to other identifiers, such as one’s voice.