Hendrix vs. Hendrix

Experience Hendrix, a company controlled by Janie Hendrix, who holds the rights to the entire estate of her more famous guitarist brother Jimi, has sued Leon Hendrix and his business partner Pitsicalis for copyright and trademark infringement. Leon and Pitsicalis allegedly used some of the many trademarks owned by Experience (Jimi’s signature and images of his face and torso) without authorization to market cigarettes and alcoholic beverages. But the legal battles over the commercial use of Jimi’s name go back a long way. As early as 2015, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled on the matter, prohibiting Leon and Pitsicalis from using the musician’s images. Furthermore, in January 2017, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia ruled that Leon and Pitsicalis’s use of the words “Jimi” and “Hendrix” on their websites, social media, and online platforms was unlawful. In the lawsuit filed on March 16, 2017, in a New York court, Experience Hendrix has also sought a ruling that the use of the name “Purple Haze” in the sale of marijuana-based products and T-shirts is unlawful. “Purple Haze” is, in fact, a song written in 1967 by Jimi Hendrix. Experience Hendrix has sought a preliminary injunction, the removal from the market of goods infringing on the registered trademark, and compensation for damages. On the other hand, Thomas Osinski, attorney for Pitsicalis and Leon Hendrix, stated that “Experience Hendrix has long been aware of my clients’ products and is pursuing this lawsuit solely to obscure and interfere with Leon’s lawful and legitimate business, which respects the legacy of Jimi Hendrix.” Osinski, regarding the content of the complaint, stated that although previous rulings have excluded Leon Hendrix and his family from Jimi Hendrix’s music catalog and denied them the right to use the trademarks created by Experience Hendrix, nothing prevents Leon and his partners from selling other Hendrix-related merchandise. Who knows how the court will resolve this family dispute this time.