{"id":38288,"date":"2025-04-04T02:01:08","date_gmt":"2025-04-04T02:01:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=38288"},"modified":"2025-04-04T02:01:08","modified_gmt":"2025-04-04T02:01:08","slug":"breaking-lamar-jackson-dale-earnhardt-jr-are-in-a-legal-dispute","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=38288","title":{"rendered":"BREAKING: Lamar Jackson & Dale Earnhardt Jr. Are In A Legal Dispute"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Lamar Jackson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are involved in a legal dispute over the number 8.<\/p>\n

Jackson, who has worn No. 8 throughout his NFL career with the Baltimore Ravens, is challenging Earnhardt’s attempt to trademark the number,\u00a0according to\u00a0trademark attorney Josh Gerben. On Wednesday, Jackson\u00a0filed a Notice of Opposition\u00a0with the\u00a0U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), arguing that the NASCAR legend’s “trademark application for a stylized version of the number 8\u2014used prominently on his race cars\u2014conflicts with Jackson\u2019s own trademark rights.”<\/p>\n

A two-time NFL MVP, Jackson has already trademarked “ERA 8” and “ERA 8 BY LAMAR JACKSON.” Those registrations cover clothing, duffel bags, sports gear and other products.<\/p>\n

In his filing, Jackson contends that he is “widely associated” with the No. 8 because of his NFL achievements and Earnhardt’s registrations “could falsely imply a connection between the two athletes and infringe on his established rights.”<\/p>\n

Earnhardt is reportedly looking for protections for apparel and toy products, including die-cast cards. The case will now move on to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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BRISTOL, TENNESSEE – SEPTEMBER 20: Dale Earnhardt Jr., driver of the #88 Hellmann’s Chevrolet, looks on during practice for the NASCAR Xfinity Series Food City 300 at Bristol Motor Speedway on September 20, 2024 in Bristol, Tennessee. (Photo by James Gilbert\/Getty Images)James Gilbert\/Getty Images<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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This isn’t Jackson’s first legal action against a fellow elite athlete associated with the No. 8. Last summer, Jackson challenged\u00a0Dallas Cowboys\u00a0Hall of Famer Troy Aikman’s use of the digit\u00a0in a complaint\u00a0filed to the\u00a0U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.<\/p>\n

Jackson lobbied his complaint against FL101, a company that lists Aikman as a director and is responsible for the production of various products that Jackson’s attorney argued “highly similar in sound, appearance, connotation, and commercial impression.”<\/p>\n

“Some of the instant reaction is, like, how can you own a number?” Christine Farley, a law professor and intellectual property expert at American University, told ESPN’s Michael Rothstein at the time. “The truth is you can own almost anything you think of as a trademark. You can own a smell. You can own a sound. You can own a single color. You can own a single number.”<\/p>\n

For what it’s worth, Gerben says he ultimately expects all three men will have access to their own registrations and be able to use the No. 8 in different ways.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lamar Jackson and Dale Earnhardt Jr. are involved in a legal dispute over the number 8. 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