Lee v. TAM, U.S., No. 15-1293, amicus brief filed 11/18/2016.
The Lanham Act ban on registering a mark that “may disparage” is unconstitutionally vague under the 5th Amendment and violates the First Amendment as applied to “The Slants” name for a band of Asian musicians, AIPLA argued to the Supreme Court in a November 18, 2016 amicus brief.
This part of Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. 1052(a), according to the brief, fails to satisfy the due process requirements of clarity in the law, as demonstrated by a long list of contradictory rulings as to what marks may or may not disparage. Alternatively, the brief contends that the provision’s application in this case violated the applicant’s First Amendment right by conditioning the important right of trademark registration on the government’s disapproval of a mark that “reclaims” a derogatory term as an expression of a viewpoint about racism against Asian Americans.
This part of Section 2(a) of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. 1052(a), according to the brief, fails to satisfy the due process requirements of clarity in the law, as demonstrated by a long list of contradictory rulings as to what marks may or may not disparage. Alternatively, the brief contends that the provision’s application in this case violated the applicant’s First Amendment right by conditioning the important right of trademark registration on the government’s disapproval of a mark that “reclaims” a derogatory term as an expression of a viewpoint about racism against Asian Americans.
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