Washington Redskins wide receiver Pierre Garcon has filed a class-action lawsuit against the daily fantasy sports website FanDuel. The complaint, filed this past Friday, October 30, 2015 in Federal Court in Maryland, accuses Fanduel of using Garcon’s name and likeness to promote their product without his permission. Garcon wants to be compensated for the use of his name and image, however the complaint does not specify damages.
Garcon used to have an individual marketing deal with FanDuel where he would promote the site via his various social media outlets. However, the website no longer engages in these type of marketing deals. The fact that Garcon is an eight year veteran of the NFL with a lucrative contract has led many to wonder why he would chose this battle and if he has initiated this litigation out of animus toward the website.
Nonetheless, this is another challenge in mounting legal woes of the daily fantasy industry.
Additional Reading:
- Find the Civil Compliant at – http://www.legalsportsreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Garcon-FanDuel-lawsuit.pdf
- http://www.wsj.com/articles/nfl-player-sues-fantasy-sports-company-fanduel-1446262574
- http://www.forbes.com/sites/darrenheitner/2015/10/31/why-pierre-garcons-lawsuit-vs-fanduel-is-a-loser/
- http://deadspin.com/pierre-garcon-is-leading-a-class-action-lawsuit-against-1739809296
- http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/10/30/pierre-garcon-files-class-action-against-fanduel/
- http://www.si.com/nfl/2015/10/30/washington-redskins-pierre-garcon-fanduel-lawsuit
- https://twitter.com/MikeGarafolo/status/660184941343449088