Michael Jordan v. Jewel Food Stores, Inc.
Paying tribute to celebrity can sometimes be an expensive
proposition. A Chicago grocery store chain found this out the
hard way when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
handed down its decision in Michael Jordan v. Jewel Food
Stores, Inc., Case No. 12-1992 (7th Cir., Feb. 19, 2014)
(Sykes, J.).
The facts are straightforward. In 2009, basketball
superstar Michael Jordan was inducted into the Naismith Memorial
Basketball Hall of Fame. Sports Illustrated decided to
produce a commemorative issue to mark Jordan's Hall of Fame
induction. Jewel agreed to provide floor space to promote the
issue. In exchange, Jewel was permitted to place a full-page
congratulatory notice in the commemorative issue, which purported
to pay tribute to Jordan, once a mega-celebrity in Chicago.
Jordan, an unquestionably fine basketball player, but an especially
astute businessman and promoter, saw in the congratulatory
