OJ, Rights of Publicity, and Debtor-Creditor Relationships
According to an Associated Press report (yes, as published on ESPN.com), Ron Goldman's father has asked to receive OJ' Simpson's rights of publicity because Simpson has never paid out on the multi-million dollar wrongful death claim. Seems to me that if the right of publicity is considered a property right under the relevant state laws that a judgment creditor should be able to reach it. After all, some sports figures create separate corporate entities that manage and own their rights of publicity. Of course, as Diane Zimmerman and I wrote here a few years ago, the issues may be just a bit more complicated than I'm now suggesting . . .