Paris Hilton Sues Hallmark Over Greeting Cards
Posted on September 13, 2007
Paris Hilton is suing Hallmark in federal court for using her image without permission in a new line of greeting cards.
In a complaint filed yesterday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, Hilton alleges that Hallmark has, among other transgressions, misappropriated her image and invaded her privacy with the card, a copy of which you'll find below. According to the lawsuit, the greeting card, which purports to show Hilton's "first day as a waitress," was first distributed earlier this year and remains on sale. Hilton is seeking at least $500,000 in actual damages and a permanent injunction barring Hallmark from further exploitation of her name and likeness.You can see the lawsuit in its entirety here.
We think she has a good case: even if it is a satire, as a public figure she owns the right to the use of her name and image to make money in commercial products. They should just cut a deal with her. After all, this is the woman who when faced with the unexpected release of a home made porn tape, cut a deal with the ex-boyfriend, sold the tape and donated the proceeds to charity. Paris may be many things, but being stupid about business matters isn't one of them.