Use of Celebrities in Advertising Uri Weinstok Weinstok Abogados Costa Rica

Right to Use Ones Personal Image

Basic principle A persons image cant be used without consent Main exception: Police, scientific or academic purposes; facts occurred in public, uses based on public interest. All exceptions must be interpreted restrictively. Exception DOES NOT apply to commercial use.

"With Ryanair, all my family can come to the wedding."

Even though it is a widely accepted principle, there are some sides to it. Regulations and case law in Latin America is not abundant, but still some basic principles can be identified.

Very personal right (Personalísimo) Enjoyed by everyone Outside commerce (cant be transferred) Do not expire Enjoy benefit of the doubt Consent is always revocable (provided that damages are paid)

Person must be recognizable If the person is not identifiable, he/she cant complain against unauthorized use Ones personal image is not affected

Librería Internacional

Limits to given consent An authorization for certain uses does not necessarily imply other uses. –Different media (press vs. Internet) –Later uses –Team sponsorships vs. Image of players

Paulo Wanchope v. Taca

Cristal 2004

Advertising must be truthful… …But sometimes telling the truth is not enough…

Franklin Chang – TLC

Use of the Image of the Deceased

Dr. Martens Footwear OK in the UK Got in trouble when published in a US based website Agency was fired over ad

Being a very personal right, it would normally end upon death BUT: –Image of the deceased must be used with respect –In some countries (in LA), Copyright laws give some rights to the descendants for a limited time (even when someones portrait is not a creation of his intellect) –This is one of the issues where Laws in different places vary significantly

Namesakes & Look-alikes A violation can occur even when a persons portrait is not used

Oscar Arias and CAFTA

Relation with Copyrights Rights over a picture vs. Image rights Rights over fictional characters

Virgin Mobile – 2007

Grosby Shoes

Trademarks & Image Rights

Sometimes a persons image gives distinctive character to a product and becomes a trademark. In these cases, the scope of protection is wider

Frank Perdue

Other Relevant Issues with Use of Celebrities

Scandals Use of competing products Change of circumstances (retirement, injury, etc.) Bad press

No matter what Laws apply Ensure rights in writing. Do not rely on presumed verbal consent. Contracts may solve most issues described. If it works somewhere, it will not necessarily work everywhere.

THANK YOU! Uri Weinstok Weinstok Abogados Costa Rica