Misappropriation of Name or Likeness
Misappropriation of name or likeness is a privacy and property tort for using a person's identity, image, or name for commercial advantage without consent, closely related to the right of publicity.
The traditional privacy-based tort protects against the dignitary harm of having one's identity exploited, while the more modern, often statutory right of publicity protects the commercial value of a person's identity, particularly for celebrities and public figures whose identity has independent economic value.
Common defenses include newsworthy or editorial use, meaning use of a person's likeness in connection with a genuine news story rather than for advertising, consent, and First Amendment protection for expressive works that incorporate a person's identity in a transformative way.
In the claim matrix, Juricratic distinguishes the dignitary-harm branch, available to any individual, from the commercial-value branch, which typically requires the plaintiff to show the identity has independent economic value. A user modeling a celebrity endorsement dispute versus a private individual's photo-misuse claim sees different damages-model pathways.
How it actually shows up
Counsel for a public figure whose image was used without permission in an advertisement pursues both misappropriation and right-of-publicity theories, focusing on the unauthorized commercial use.
- Is misappropriation the same as the right of publicity?
- They are closely related; misappropriation is the traditional privacy tort, and the right of publicity is often a distinct statutory or economic-value-based claim.
- Does using someone's image in news coverage violate this tort?
- Generally no, if the use is genuinely newsworthy or editorial rather than commercial.
- Can a person's voice or persona be protected, not just name and image?
- Yes, many jurisdictions extend protection to voice, signature, and other identifying characteristics.
This page is an educational explainer, not legal advice, and creates no attorney–client relationship. Juricratic is a simulation engine: every probability-like figure is a dial you set, not a calibrated prediction. Verify every rule, deadline, and figure against the authorities and orders that govern your matter.
Turn the concept into a modeled matter.
Juricratic makes every one of these ideas a live dial: model your case as a solvable game, then watch the optimal line and the settlement window move as the assumptions do.
Request access →