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ARTICLE · 28 JULY 2021

Iced Out: Use Of Ice Cube's Image And Catchphrase Was Not Endorsement

Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner LLP
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Rapper and actor O'Shea Jackson, professionally known as Ice Cube, lost his day in court (for now) on claims of false endorsement against trading platform Robinhood because he failed to plausibly allege that Robinhood's...

United StatesLitigation, Mediation & Arbitration
Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, LLP
Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, LLP
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Rapper and actor O'Shea Jackson, professionally known as Ice Cube, lost his day in court (for now) on claims of false endorsement against trading platform Robinhood because he failed to plausibly allege that Robinhood's use of his image and catchphrase implied endorsement.  Robinhood had published a newsletter on its website "Robinhood Snacks" which featured an article discussing market corrections for technology stocks with an alteration of Ice Cube's lyric and catchphrase "Check yo self before you wreck yourself"—here, "Correct yourself before you wreck yourself"—along with the below image of Ice Cube from Are We Done Yet? (2007):

1095054a.jpg

In response, Ice Cube filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleging that Robinhood's article falsely implied that he had endorsed Robinhood and its services.  He claimed false endorsement under the Lanham Act as well as misappropriation of likeness and unfair competition under

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