Foxworthy v. Custom Tees, Inc.

879 F.Supp. 1200 (1995)

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Foxworthy v. Custom Tees, Inc.

United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
879 F.Supp. 1200 (1995)

Sarah Holley headshot
  • Written by Sarah Holley, JD

Facts

Jeff Foxworthy (plaintiff) was a comedian known nationwide for his “you might be a redneck if . . .” jokes, for example, “you might be a redneck if . . . you’ve ever financed a tattoo.” Foxworthy had a comedy album entitled “You Might be a Redneck If . . .” that sold more copies than any other comedy album in over a decade; Foxworthy had a calendar with 365 “you might be a redneck if . . .” jokes printed inside, one for every day of the year; and Foxworthy sold t-shirts with his redneck jokes on them, among other merchandise, at his concerts and elsewhere. When Foxworthy discovered that Custom Tees, Inc. (defendant) was selling t-shirts bearing near replications of his jokes, Foxworthy sued for unfair competition, claiming ownership to the phrase “you might be a redneck” as a trademark and seeking to enjoin Custom Tees from using that or a similar phrase. The only difference between Foxworthy’s jokes and those appearing on the t-shirts was the format, for example, “if you’ve ever financed a tattoo . . . you ain’t nothin’ but a redneck.”

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Freeman, J.)

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Casebooks

Entertainment Law

Key Terms

  • TrademarkA symbolic representation of a company or product.
  • Secondary MeaningA meaning attributed to a particular feature of a product whereby the feature is no longer primarily associated with the product itself, but rather the source of the product.
  • Unfair CompetitionAn action for unfair competition lies in the intentional doing of some act to the detriment of another’s business without just cause or excuse.
  • Lanham Act[15 U.S.C. §§ 1051–1127] A federal statute that regulates the use of trademarks, i.e., pictures, words, and other symbols used to identify goods and services, in commercial activity. The Lanham Act also defines various federal claims for unfair competition, including claims based on false advertising.
  • Likelihood of ConfusionThe probability that potential consumers will be confused about the source of the product. Courts use likelihood of confusion as a standard to evaluate trademark infringement claims.
  • Trademark InfringementUnauthorized use of subject matter similar enough to trademarked subject matter likely to cause confusion in the mind of an ordinary consumer as to the source of a product.

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