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San Francisco Art & Athletics, Inc. V. United States Olympic Committee: Usoc May Enforce Its Rights In Olympic Without Proof Of Confusion, Charles F. Hauff Jr.

Akron Law Review

In San Francisco Arts & Athletics, Inc. v. United States Olympic Committee, the United States Supreme Court held that the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) could enforce its statutory rights in the mark OLYMPIC without proving likelihood of customer confusion. Because this holding extended the USOC's trademark rights beyond those engendered by the Lanham Act, the Court was compelled to subject those rights to constitutional scrutiny. The Court's holding prevented San Francisco Arts & Athletics, Inc. (SFAA) from using the word OLYMPIC to promote the "Gay Olympic Games."

The SFAA decision will probably affect future analyses of trademark rights …