ARTICLE · 07 JUNE 2022

Image Rights: Formula One's Verstappen Aims For IP Win Off The Racetrack

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Racing car driver Max Verstappen hopes to continue his winning streak in the courts as he seeks to protect his portrait (image) right against the use of a lookalike.

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Racing car driver Max Verstappen hopes to continue his winning streak in the courts as he seeks to protect his portrait (image) right against the use of a lookalike. Julia Schefman explains the background to the Dutch case, while Marine Dissoubray and Luke Portnow provide the French and UK perspectives.

The subject of portrait (or image) rights came to the fore in the Netherlands following a series of adverts by supermarket competitors Jumbo and Picnic. After Jumbo launched an advert featuring Max Verstappen, online chain Picnic responded with an advert featuring a lookalike of the racing car driver wearing his famous race suit and cap. The question before the courts was whether Picnic had violated Verstappen's portrait rights by using his lookalike.

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