Illinois Seeks to Amend Right of Publicity Statute

Illinois is considering amending its 1999 Right of Publicity statute, in the wake of the James Brown lawsuit. A bill is in front of the legislature and is receiving support from various notable personalities and estates. The bill would make recognition of a post-mortem Right of Publicity retroactive, instead of taking effect only after the effective date of the statute. The bill also would clarify or extend certain First Amendment-based exemptions for media companies or content providers (with respect to relevant copyrights), as long as those entities do not endeavor to grant a Right of Publicity in the process.