Book Title: The Cambridge Handbook of International and Comparative Trademark Law

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Abstract: This chapter explores the overlap between the right of publicity and trademark laws in the protection of the commercial value of the human persona against unauthorized exploitation. It discusses the ambit of trademark registration for the indicia of identity of well-known individuals and interrogates whether it would even be necessary for celebrities, in light of the availability of the right of publicity in a majority of state jurisdictions in the United States, to seek trademark registration for distinctive aspects of their personae.