Wow. This was just incredibly bad judgment on the part of Jewel and Dominick’s.
Michael Jordan is suing Chicago’s two big grocery chains, Jewel and Dominick’s, claiming they used his good name and his good number — 23 — to sell steaks and other goods without his permission.
According to the suit, filed Monday in Cook County Circuit Court: “Jordan brings these claims for violation of the right of publicity, false endorsement, false designation of origin, deceptive business practices, and unfair competition against” Jewel-Osco and Dominick’s.
In both cases, the grocery store chains had advertisements in a commemorative Sports Illustrated issue congratulating him on this year’s induction in to the basketball Hall of Fame, according to the suit.
According to the suit, the Dominick’s ad featured Jordan’s name and number with the phrase “You are a cut above” and a photo of a steak.
Below the congratulations is an ad for $2 off a Rancher’s Reserve steak. In the case of Jewel, Jordan takes issue with a full-page magazine ad that congratulates him on the Hall of Fame honor.
The pair of basketball shoes, with a number 23 on the tongues, “appear to be an inaccurate and misleading copy of Air Jordan basketball shoes, which are the subject of an endorsement agreement between Jordan and Nike, Inc.
I would not want to wrestle with Michael Jordan in the courts.