Supreme Court Strikes Down Lanham Act’s Prohibition On “Immoral or Scandalous” Trademarks

On June 24, 2019, the Supreme Court issued its decision in Iancu v. Brunetti (available here). The Supreme Court found that the Lanham Act’s ban on registering trademarks that are “immoral or scandalous” violated the First Amendment and, accordingly, struck the ban down.

This result was anticipated, as two Terms ago, the Supreme Court in Matal v. Tam struck down a statute banning the registration of “disparaging trademarks.” The Supreme Court found that both bans impermissibly disfavor certain ideas under the First Amendment.

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