A federal judge has preliminarily ruled that rapper T.I. and his wife, singer-songwriter Tameka “Tiny” Harris, should receive $17.8 million in profits from MGA Entertainment in a trademark dispute involving a line of dolls. Initially, the Harris family was awarded more than $71 million in damages, but a judge ruled that MGA should not pay $53 million in punitive damages. The Harris family successfully argued that the dolls were copied from their OMG Girlz, a former rap group that included Tiny's daughter. U.S. District Judge James Selna said that while MGA's actions were negligent, they did not meet the legal threshold of intentional infringement. “Conduct that was reckless, callous or willful,” Serna wrote. Still, the judge acknowledged evidence that the dolls resembled celebrities and said MGA's designers were faced with copycat designs multiple times. Selna concluded that $17.8 million was enough to “deter” future violations. “We're delighted,” Tiny Harris said after the ruling. “The third time is the charm,” she added, referring to the series of trials that led to this point. MGA lawyer Paul Loh countered that the company had sold 45 million dolls without any complaints. “They received 100 percent of the profits. We think this is serious enough,” he argued, claiming it was punishment enough. Like this: Like Loading… Discover more from Baller AlertSubscribe to get the latest posts delivered to your email.
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